


Don't go Outside

by Koizumi_Scarlet



Category: Ghost Hunt
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-02
Updated: 2015-12-28
Packaged: 2018-04-29 14:31:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 11
Words: 40,917
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5131088
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Koizumi_Scarlet/pseuds/Koizumi_Scarlet
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Mai and Naru was ready to enjoy a leisure visit to Naru's parents in England over Christmas. Yet an unexpected visitor in the night threw a spanner in the works and they are needed on a case that's already proven itself dangerous. Travelling to London's most famous insane Asylum, they must separate the truth from the lies to solve the mystery and perhaps save a soul in the process. Sequel to IASH.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Ok, since the prologue is veeery short, I am going to take the chance to just say a few things before this story starts. Firstly, it is already finished and is 10 Chapters long, all between 3000-4000 words (except for Chapter 10, as it's combined with the epilogue), not including the prologue. It is the sequel to my story of I Am Still Here, though I guess if you really wanted to, you could read it on its own.
> 
> The rating is NOT for anything sexual, it is for upsetting themes that will be playing a part in the plot, though I guess it depends on what type of things you find upsetting.
> 
> I will be posting each Monday, though it's been known that lots of comments can convince me to post sooner. This fic plays off four years after the end of I Am Still Here and as it's in England, the Japanese team isn't going to make an appearance.
> 
> Because it's in England, any dialogue written normally is English, while bold is Japanese.
> 
> So: "Blah" – English; "Blah" (bold)– Japanese; Blah (cursive) – Thoughts; Blah (bold and cursive)– Spirit talking
> 
> Disclaimer: I do not own Ghost Hunt or anything to do with it. All I do own in this story is my OC characters and the specific nuisances of the plot, though I won't say that in earnest. This is the only disclaimer I'll post for the duration of the story, as I think they are silly and useless, as you obviously wouldn't write fanfiction if you owned the story, you would publish it and become stinking rich.
> 
> Without further ado, enjoy!

**Prologue**

White.

White, white,  _whitewhitewhitewhitewhitewhiteWHITE!_

Bony arms curled tighter around even bonier knees and whimpers filled the small, empty room. The sound seemed to bounce off the padded walls, mocking the inhabitant and cruelly taunting them about their inability to leave.

_It was too white…_

Eyes squeezed shut tightly, knowing that if they opened, horrible things would play out before them. Taunting voices came from non-existent shadows; because in this room, there was nothing to cast shadows.

_Yet it seemed to writhe in shadowed presences…_

The tears on their cheeks had long since dried up in uncomfortable tracks, staining their face along with the blood from their gnawed lips. Scratches covered the skeletal arms as permanent shivers wracked through their body.

_It was too silent, yet so loud at the same time…_

Though as much as this room frightened them, what waited outside frightened them even more. Horrible things waited for those who left the safety of the isolated room…

_So… Stay Inside…_


	2. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, I think most of it was said in the prologue, so just enjoy the story!

**Chapter 1**

"Naru, you need to take a break. We didn't come to work, you idiotic scientist." Naru felt his body relax as his wife carded her fingers through his hair, despite his mind lamenting over the files he knew his wife would never allow him to finish reading now.

"It's not work Mai, it's just a bit of light reading." The 23-year old female gave him a shrewd look, her fingers idly flipping through one of the folders as she scanned them quickly.

"Yes, because reading about the apparent dismembering of a victim in your father's latest case is considered light reading. Honestly Naru, Martin said that he had the case about solved. You just need to admit you wanted to satisfy your insatiable curiosity, mixed with the fact that you still don't trust Martin to relay the exact details of an upsetting case. Or rather, that Luella wouldn't allow him to."

Naru swilled the big office chair around quickly, causing Mai to unbalance and land in his lap. Wrapping his arms around her waist, he smirked down at her.

"And are you saying that Luella wouldn't do such a thing?"

"She's your mother, at least call her mum or if you must, Mother." Naru rolled his eyes at their frequent light argument and he responded with his familiar lines.

"I call her mother when talking to her, I believe that is enough. Besides, she's also your mother-in-law and requested numerous times that you call her mother as well, yet I don't see you doing it." His wife of four years narrowed her eyes and huffed, even though Naru could see the amusement hiding in them.

"We're getting off track here. Just because Luella doesn't want to ruin our visit and decided to keep case information from you, doesn't mean you can sneak in here to read it when she's in bed,  _as you should be._ "

Naru smirked at Mai's adorable frown and the way she resembled a bird whose feathers were ruffled. The chestnut-haired woman was still ranting about manners and such, but he had long since stopped paying attention, especially not as his wife's pliable body was nestled comfortably on his lap. He nosed her neck, lightly pushing her long hair out of the way as he laid a trail of butterfly kisses down the length of her neck.

"Naru… ugh, stop it, don't think you can… get out of trouble this way every time…" Despite her protests, her hands fisted his shirt and her body trembled in anticipation. Smirking against her skin, he laid one last, slow kiss on her neck, before looking up into her eyes.

"It's not my fault you're so easily distracted Mai. Why shouldn't I take advantage of any vulnerabilities you have? I believe it's my right as your husband."

Almond eyes sharpened into a glare and Mai stood in disgust, her cheeks tinted by a blush that Naru still managed to get from her over all the years.

"Well, if it's your right as husband to exploit my weaknesses, then I guess it's my right as wife to do the same to you."

Naru snorted, his eyes glinting with smugness.

"Except that I have no weaknesses to exploit. There lies your crucial problem." Naru would never admit that the sly glint in Mai's eyes and her wicked grin unnerved him, yet caused some anticipation to build. He leaned back comfortably as she stalked forward. Bracing her hands on the chair's armrests, she leaned forwards till he could feel her sweet breath on his lips.

"Oh really…?"

Naru's eyes were drawn to where her nightdress gaped low, revealing the top curve of her firm breasts and leaving the wide expanse of her milky skin bare to his gaze. A low chuckle had his gaze snapping upwards again, only to look into smouldering hazel eyes.

His own midnight blue ones closed involuntarily as soft lips pressed against his and Mai moaned huskily as his tongue traced her lips before slipping past them. Her one hand ran through his hair as she nibbled at his bottom lip and Naru could feel his entire body heating up as his hand lifted to the front of her nightgown. Before he could go further, however, Mai pulled back and winked cheekily at him, before sauntering with swinging hips out of Martin's office.

Naru groaned silently in exasperation, his mind full of Mai and her soft touches. Straightening the folders strewn across the desk, he packed them away quick and efficiently, before standing to pursue his smug wife.

Mai had always been his only weakness.

The next morning Mai woke slowly, warm sheets encasing her body snugly as she stretched her tender body. Naru always seemed to love to tease her to the brink of insanity before he made slow, passionate love to her and Mai never found herself complaining.

Smiling drowsily, her hand trailed over the bed beside her, but the cold sheets convinced her that the narcissist had left some time ago. Glancing at the clock, she was not surprised, as it was just after 8 a.m. and Naru had always detested sleeping in when he felt he could do something better.

Sitting up, she pushed the covers off her and stretched her arms above her head, moaning slightly at the pleasant ache in her muscles. Toeing into her purple slippers, she shuffled to the adjoining bathroom for a quick shower, scrubbing her body and washing her hair efficiently, before just enjoying the pounding hot water on her back.

After a few minutes of just relaxing under the spray of water, she turned it off and stepped out, towelling herself dry with a huge, fluffy white towel. Wrapping her western-style bathrobe around her, she brushed her teeth as she rifled through the closet, picking out a snug-fitting pair of jeans, a cream cashmere sweater and chestnut boots with white fluff covering the top half. Grabbing some underwear, she laid it out on the bed, before returning to the bathroom to spit out the toothpaste and wash out her mouth.

Running a comb through her hair, she returned to the room, where she quickly got dressed and blow dried her hair, before she made her way out of the room and down the corridor of the western-styled mansion. Mai still found herself amazed at the Davis' home at times, even after visiting regularly for almost five years now.

The house, commissioned by Martin's grandfather, was a huge place with more bedrooms than Mai cared to know and large family rooms. However, true to what she had come to expect from Davis men, the house had no ballroom, but rather a room set aside for research equipment and a private lab. It seemed Martin's grandfather had been a scientist and wanted the extra space at home, which Martin later converted into an area for his own research.

There was also a separate part of the house which Luella used for her offices, as she gave private counselling and therapy to various people out of her own home. Having a PhD in psychology and money to her name, Mai was not surprised the loving woman opened her own business. A lot of the woman's clients were actually former clients of her husband or people associated with them, since a lot of people were traumatised by psychic experiences of hauntings and were too afraid to talk to a normal psychologist for fear of being declared mentally unstable.

The plot of land the house was built on wasn't particularly large, but it was still big enough to host the mansion and a beautiful garden comfortably. Numerous times the house's inhabitants could find Mai strolling through the lush greenery, her hand trailing over bright flowers or her feet dipping into the calm pond where Koi swam.

It's been a week since Mai and Naru had come to London to visit Naru's parents for Christmas. Though Mai wasn't so concerned about the meaning behind Christmas, as it was mainly a lover's holiday back in Japan, she never missed out on enjoying the Christmas spirit and celebrating it with friends and family.

"Mai darling, I see you're awake! Breakfast is just finished, so take a seat dear." Mai smiled gratefully at Luella, sitting down besides Naru who was reading the morning newspaper, though his face told her he didn't find whatever he was reading particularly stimulating.

"Morning." Pressing a kiss to Naru's cheek, she giggled softly as he merely grunted at her, though the corner of his mouth did twitch upwards.

The young woman's mouth started watering as Luella placed a plate with a full English breakfast in front of her and she picked up her knife and fork. Though the food had been a bit odd to her in the beginning and difficult to digest, but Mai had quickly grown used to it and enjoyed eating western food when she came to visit.

She remained, however, happy each time she returned to Japan and had her usual breakfast of steamed rice, miso soup, grilled fish, tamagoyaki (rolled omelette) and tsukemono pickles. If she felt lazy, she would usually just make some okayu (rice pudding) to eat, while Naru was usually satisfied with some jam-covered toast and a sunny-side up egg.

Mai sliced her kippers into smaller pieces, eating them together with the eggs and beans. She rolled up her mushrooms in her bacon, making a sort of bacon 'sushi' roll, which she ate before her toast covered in marmalade. Naru sighed at her strange way of eating her bacon, but she just stuck out her tongue and continued munching away happily, taking a sip of orange juice every now and then.

"Morning everyone, I trust you had a good night's sleep?" Mai returned a cheerful Martin's greeting and once again thanked her lucky stars that his and Luella's room were some ways away from the room she and Naru shared, as she wasn't certain how she would have coped making love to Naru with his parents next door.

"Morning Father. I wanted to ask about one of the cases I read about. The o-"

"Noll! Honestly, it's Christmas Eve and I will not spend it listening to you and your father talk about ghost and hauntings. Come Martin, sit and eat. And you Noll, not another word about work!"

Ignoring Naru's glare, Mai chortled as she stood up from her half-finished plate of food, entering the kitchen, only to return a few minutes later with a cup of steaming Earl Grey, perfectly steeped to Naru's liking.

This time she got more than a twitch, but rather a definite tilt to his lips as he gratefully took the tea.

Sitting back down, Mai continued her breakfast as she basked in the comfortable atmosphere of family, aided by Luella's cheerful chattering.

This scene set the mood for the rest of their Christmas celebrations, with Luella a bundle of cheerful energy, Mai getting swept up in the excitement of it all and dragging Naru along with her and Martin contently watching over them and inserting comments designed to stir things up here and there.

GH

A loud banging and the disappearance of Naru's warmth jerked Mai awake and she groggily stared around the darkened room. The sharp light of the lamp Naru flicked on had her flinching back and by the time she could open her eyes fully, her husband had already left the room.

Pushing her hair out of her face, she slipped on her robe and hurried after him, seeing him disappearing around the corner that led to the entrance hall. She could hear distraught voices amidst the cacophony the storming rain made outside and she walked faster.

Entering the small receiving room to the side of the entrance hall, she found Martin crouching in front of a bedraggled and soaked young woman, probably in her mid-twenties, who was babbling incoherently with make-up running down her face as Luella stroked her back and Naru observed her from behind his father.

Seizing up the situation, Mai left the room and went to the kitchen, filling the kettle up and hunting through the linen cupboards for a blanket as the water boiled. Pouring the hot water into the delicate teapot, she placed the tea strainer, containing her own blend of tea, into the pot.

While she was waiting for the tea to steep, she quickly fetched some of her clothes for the probably freezing woman and returned to the kitchen. Placing five cups and spoons onto a tray, she placed the teapot, sugar pot and milk cup on it as well and left the kitchen with it and the blanket and clothes.

Seeing as all of this hadn't taken more than a few minutes, she wasn't surprised to see that the situation in the receiving room hadn't really improved and she sighed. Placing the tray on the small coffee table, she gently shouldered Naru out of the way and draped the warm blanket around the shivering woman.

Her action seemed to snap Martin out of his daze, as he immediately stopped bombarding the woman with questions and instead tucked the blanket around her tighter. Pouring the tea into the cups, she relaxed as she smelled the soothing scent of chamomile and orange and placed a warm cup gently into the now silently sobbing woman's hands.

"Come on, take a sip, I promise it will help." Watching as she moved in a mechanical fashion, Mai made sure the stranger drank some of the tea and saw how her body almost immediately reacted to the lavender in the blend, calming her down and uncoiling her muscles. Smiling softly, she left the woman in Luella's caring hands and poured Naru and the rest some tea as well.

Naru sighed audibly as he sipped the tea she usually only made on stressful cases and wound his arm around her waist in gratitude.

It wasn't long before the girl's shivering lessened, an effect from the blanket, heated house and soothing tea. Luella's calm words seemed to reassure her further and after a while she finished her cup as her entire body slumped.

"Alexis, can you tell me what happened? Why are you here? I thought you were on a case with Emily, Alisha, Cian and Rhys?" Mai's eyes narrowed slightly as she saw the woman flinch at the mention of this Alisha and by the tightening of Naru's arm, he had also seen it.

"I…I was. But… Something went wrong. We can't- can't figure out the haunting. In the beginning, it wasn't… wasn't so bad. But-"

Mai jolted at hearing the stranger speak, as her voice suggested she was younger than she had seemed. Looking closely, Mai ignored the make-up and looked to the face underneath, and figured the woman couldn't be older than 20. An intern of Martin's then, rather than a full-time employee.

Biting back a sob, the woman continued. "It, it was the fourth day that any sign of activity started. Nothing major, just some banging noises, cold spots and what looked like poltergeisting. But on the sixth day…"

The girl choked up again and Mai poured her some more tea before returning to Naru's side. Trembling as she sipped the tea, the girl continued her account with dull, yet panicked eyes.

"On the sixth day, the hallucinations started." Naru's arm had become a steel band around Mai and his body was still in a way that Mai knew meant he was on high alert.

"At first, it was small things, like thinking we were picking up something only for it to turn out to be something else. Cian almost injured himself that way, seeing a lightbulb as an apple and almost biting into it. he would have, if Na-Alisha hadn't stopped him."

Drawing another ragged breath, the woman continued on doggedly and Mai had to admire her grit. It seemed now that she had calmed down, she was determined to tell the entire story.

"Then it worsened, to seeing rooms filled with mud and muck, chains on the walls, what looked like people being tortured or walking past us, only for the cameras and equipment to pick up  _nothing_. And a voice, speaking in our ears, crying and whispering. We started thinking that maybe we should call you, as our research turned up so many incidents that we couldn't narrow it down to a specific spirit.

"But the phones wouldn't work. Any electronic device that functioned within the building was fine, but as soon as you tried to make contact with the world outside, it stopped working. When you try to call someone, the whispering voice would be on the other end. If you try to mail someone, I images of gruesome bodies would pop up. We tried to leave ourselves, but as soon as we left the property, we would open our eyes to find ourselves back inside some room, with the cameras showing us walking there on our own."

Mai's mind was awash with horror and pity, knowing the young woman must have endured much in recent days. Of course, her husband had none of the same sympathy it seemed.

"If you couldn't leave, how are you here? Where are the others?" Mai and Luella threw a glare at Naru for his harsh tone, but Marin nodded along as the girl jerked, only now seeming to realise Naru was in the room. She swallowed, but soldiered on and Mai's respect for her grew.

"We knew we had to get word out to professor Davis somehow. We thought that if the entity could manipulate our senses, we had to get by without using it. Rhys, after some experimenting, realised that the entity's range of influence only stretched to the building and not the grounds. That was why it could stop anything from leaving the building.

"However, we found out that for some reason, devices that worked inside the building weren't influenced or tampered with, because although it didn't capture the apparitions we saw, it did still show us. The cameras still gave seemingly reliable information, though the one we placed at the security guard's gate outside seemed to be caught in a constant loop of the first day it was placed there. It was only when the devices tried to send a signal to the outside.

"Rhys, being our main tech guy, designed a sort of GPS device using the blueprints we received upon starting the case. The theory was for someone to use the device to lead them to the front door, because since that was technically still inside the house, it wouldn't change the outcome unless we tried to open the door. We also realised that the entity had a very narrow sight, as it couldn't easily focus on two things at once.

The closest we came to escaping was when we tried escaping by two different methods. If our timing wasn't off, then Cian would have made it out, but as it was, he was caught in a hallucination right as the cameras showed him reaching the front door, after Rhys woke up in another room. But after that, it seemed we were being watched more closely and hallucinating more frequently."

"That still doesn't answer my question." Mai elbowed Naru and returned his glare, but the woman didn't seem to notice.

"No, but it helped us come up with a plan. Originally Alisha was going to take the device and wander around as if checking the temperatures while Cian would try to escape at a certain time. Five minutes after Cian tries to escape, Rhys, will try and five minutes after that, me and so one. This was supposed to keep the entity occupied while Alisha followed the directions to the front door and left that way.

"However, Alisha disappeared yesterday. We- we don't know where she is…" Tears slipped down Alexis' cheeks and Mai's heart softened in more sympathy, knowing intimately what it felt like when your friends disappeared during a case.

"Things became more violent and we knew we had to get out, so we enacted the plan with me instead of Alisha. I- I couldn't find the main door, but I was desperate and when the GPS said I was standing right across a window leading to outside, even though it looked like a blood-splattered wall, I ran straight at it and jumped. The glass broke around me and I was outside. I immediately came here."

Martin was nodding pensively as he sat back and after a short silence, Naru spoke up.

"Where was this case?" It wasn't Alexis, but Martin who answered.

"Bethlem Royal Hospital." Mai felt chills run up her spine and her hair stand on end as one word echoed through her mind.

_Bedlam…_

GH

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Righto, the scene is set and the story can begin! I did a lot of research for this story and though not everything is factual, as I had to make some adjustments for the plot and my own enjoyment, most is:)
> 
> Tell me what you think so far, though I know there isn't a lot to be commented about.
> 
> Until next Monday!


	3. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright, here's chapter 2! Don't expect too much, as I have to set the scene in this chapter and get the ball rolling. You will, however, have a glimpse into their team on this case;)
> 
> Thanks for the kudos and a suuuuper special thanks to blondiee1396 for commenting!
> 
> Without further ado, enjoy!

**Chapter 2**

"Here, change into these. It's not good for your health to be in those wet clothes." Mai handed the grateful woman the change of clothes and watched as Luella led the lightly shivering intern away. Martin and Naru were poring over the file of the Bedlam case at the coffee table, talking in low voices to each other. Running a hand over her face, she made her way towards them, catching the tail end of Martin's words.

"-e cannot be certain of the measuring equipment anymore. From what she said, it sounded like the entity will only interfere on certain occasions."

"But then, the stuff they saw could well have been all hallucinations and thus the cameras are working just fine in reality. She said that they could pick up cold spots and poltergeisting, so maybe the measuring equipment is the only variables that can be trusted to be constant, provided it stays in the boundaries of the premises."

Martin nodded, his hand rubbing his chin as he thought. Shuffling a few pages, he unearthed another file and opened it as he talked.

"This research is the preliminary research done prior to accepting the case and also what they sent me before the first week was over. I admit it was a fault of mine to not question their sudden silence, but we'll have to conduct our own investigation before we go in."

Naru took the file and flipped through it, his eyes scanning as Martin continued.

"Seeing as the hospital was an insane asylum and one that is famous for the horrors that occurred within its walls, there are a lot of possible victims to haunt the halls. However, most of the building has been investigated numerous times by paranormal investigators before they opened it again as a hospital and museum. That is why it is almost impossible to narrow down the identity of the entity unless we get someone in there to find us a hint.

"Apparently, they tried having Cian contact the spirit, but it failed to approach him. We'll need to familiarise us with the previous patients before we go in, but the records of those times aren't entirely complete and at some time left deliberately blank. Especially since this building is apart from the main building."

Naru nodded and sighed lightly as he placed the folder back on the table. Mai sat down next to him, placing her hand on his arm and looking into his eyes as he turned towards her. To those who didn't know him, he would look aloof and uncaring, but she could see the worry he hid in those blue depths and she loved him for it. Seeing the question in his eyes, she nodded, answering his worry without words.

"Father, tomorrow, Mai and I will go join the other investigators on the case. We won't take any research equipment, as the team will already have the regular set. Also, in order not to rile the spirit up more than necessary, it will be better if only the two of us went. I know it's your case, but I formally request you turn it over to me. We will take enough food and water for five days, but if more than that has passed with no word from us, then you can take drastic measures. However, at the moment the people running the hospital has requested discreteness, am I correct?" Seeing his father nod, Naru went on.

"Then we will first try and solve it with the least possible attention, before we draw the public eye." Martin exhaled heavily, rubbing his eyes as his body slumped. Mai felt sorry for her father-in-law, as he was obviously feeling anxious about the safety of his team. Then he sat up, his body straight and his face determined.

"Alright, I formally turn the case over to you, Oliver. Please be cautious, it's been a while since we've had an entity that could manipulate the senses to this degree. Prepare yourselves tonight, talk to Alexis and then tomorrow morning, you and Mai will go to the site. I would have preferred if I could send Lin with you, but, ignoring the spirit's seeming volatile nature, he's away on another case with Madoka at the moment."

Naru nodded and stood, tilting his head slightly at his father as he left. Mai bid Martin good night and followed her husband, her mind whirling with thoughts of the dangerous case they were taking over.

"Naru, how did we get this case? Martin said the place has been investigated several times, so why did they think it necessary to do so again?" Solemn eyes, as blue as the night sky, turned to glance at her.

"There is an outer building of the original hospital that hasn't been converted and merged with the modern hospital and is off-limits to the public. It's called the far east wing, despite not being connected to the northern building and only one story high. They wanted to start renovations, when the caretaker stated that he had heard and seen some strange things there over the years. At first they hadn't taken him seriously, but then he started making an upheaval about it, claiming the devil himself lived there.

"The caretaker was a highly religious man and threatened to go public with his claims. Of course, he couldn't damage the Hospital in any significant way, but they wanted to avoid the negative attention and so negotiated with him and finally reached a compromise. The caretaker will stay quiet about his claims, as long as they have a team of renown paranormal investigators clear the building safe and clean. Now, thought the people on the actual team aren't that high in the paranormal society, except maybe for Alisha and Cian, they do come from a prestigious company, namely my parent's company, British Society for Psychic Research, or BSPR."

Mai nodded to show she understood and allowed her mind to wander over the facts as they entered their bedroom. Naru made a beeline for the desk on the far side of the room, rummaging in the drawers as Mai started packing some clothes and other necessities for them.

She was suddenly very grateful towards Ayako, the mother-figure having given her a set of protective charms before she left, seeing as she 'always managed to get herself into some kind of trouble'. Making sure the thick paper wasn't in any danger of tearing or crinkling, she stashed them in her suitcase. Walking into the bathroom, she opened the medicinal cabinet and retrieved her vitamins and nausea medicine.

A few weeks ago she had suffered from stomach cramps and nausea, but Naru had fetched her some over-the-counter anti-nausea pills and it had gone away within a day. Ever since, however, Mai took them with her when on a case, as she found they also worked well for her more distressing cases. Feeling something wet on her lip, she wiped it with a finger, only for her finger to come back red.

" **Naru!"**  Sitting down, she tipped her head back as her husband entered the room. His eyes softened as he saw her position and he immediately grabbed a bit of toilet paper, pinching her nose as he helped her keep her head back.

" **Again? This is the second time this month. I really think you should see a doctor, Mai."**  Mai grimaced as the old subject of her nosebleeds came up again.

" **Naru, it's unnecessary. I've been prone to nosebleeds since I was little; getting one every time I caught a cold or if it was too warm. Don't worry so much, I'm sure it's just stress or something."** Though looking decidedly unhappy with her, Naru nodded as he let go of her nose after five minutes and she was pleased to see the nosebleed had stopped.

Giving him a quick kiss of thanks, she gently pushed him out the bathroom.

" **Go on, finish with your packing, I'll join you in a minute."**  She watched her husband's retreating back before she sighed and grabbed a few towels and toiletries to pack. Making sure she had everything, she exited the bathroom, seeing Naru sitting on the bed as he flipped through on of his books on paranormal cases.

Zipping up the suitcases, she placed them by the door and returned to bed. Snuggling under the covers, as the night air was quite cold, she turned to the brooding 24-year old.

" **Are you coming to bed? Not even you can solve the case from here Naru."**  She smirked as dark blue eyes glared at her, before an amused smirk adorned his face.

" **Maybe, but I can familiarize myself with the case. But no, I first need to talk to Miss Reid more, I'm not sure I'll get time tomorrow. I won't be long, so go to sleep so long."**  Mai nodded to show she understood and turned on her side, smiling as she felt Naru's lips press against her cheek as he turned off the light before exiting the room.

Rolling around to get comfortable, Mai slipped into a deep sleep long before Naru returned.

GH

_**Baby, baby, naughty baby,** _

_**Hush, you squalling thing, I say.** _

_**Peace this moment, peace, or maybe** _

_**Bonaparte will pass this way.** _

_**Baby, baby, he's a giant,** _

_**Tall and black as Rouen steeple,** _

_**And he breakfasts, dines, rely on't,** _

_**Every day on naughty people.** _

_**Baby, baby, if he hears you** _

_**As he gallops past the house,** _

_**Limb from limb at once he'll tear you,** _

_**Just as pussy tears a mouse.** _

_**And he'll beat you, beat you, beat you,** _

_**And he'll beat you into pap,** _

_**And he'll eat you, eat you, eat you,** _

_**Every morsel snap, snap, snap…** _

GH

Mai shot up with sweat coating her body as her mind instantly became alert. Her breath came out in gasps as the last whispery note of the eerie song floated away and left Mai in silence. Her eyes searched the badly lit room and she felt her body relax as she recognised the room she and Naru usually stayed in when visiting his parents.

Falling back onto the bed, she threw an arm over her eyes as she tried to calm down, thankful Naru wasn't here to see her minor freak-out over something as trivial as a song. Her gut clenched as she remembered the macabre lyrics and without being entirely aware of what she was doing, she reached over to the beside table's drawer, pulling out her dream diary gifted to her by Lin some years ago, when the relevance of her dreams to cases was recognised. It was worn and almost falling apart, with pictures and notes stuck in, hastily scribbled drawings and stuffed with research clippings and small notes in the margins. Scribbling the nursery rhyme onto a new page, she added notes about her feelings over the dream, as they've discovered that Mai's intuition during dreams usually revealed more than she thought. Finishing, she closed it with a snap, happy to put the morbid song out of her mind.

As it was nearly 6 a.m., she knew Naru would want to get ready to leave for the case, further evidenced by the lack of his presence in bed. Getting up to take a quick shower, Mai hurried through her morning routine, before throwing on a white jean, black sweater and boots and grabbing a thick burgundy coat as it was snowing outside. She gazed at herself in the mirror, not sure if she put on some weight, but her jeans fit just fine and she couldn't see a difference, so it didn't really matter.

"Mai, are you awa-" Naru stopped mid-sentence as he entered the room and saw his wife dressed and ready to go.

"Yep, all ready. Are we going now?" Mai smiled as Naru walked closer and wrapped his arms around her, resting his cheek on her head.

"Yes, after you've had some breakfast." Mai could feel the way his body was tensed and she rubbed his back.

" **Naru,"**  she whispered softly,  **"What's wrong? Are you that worried about the case?"**  The silence lasted a bit longer, before Naru exhaled softly, releasing some of the tension that lined his body.

" **This case will be dangerous. The power needed to not only hide from any previous investigations, but also to induce illusions to the extent that Miss Reid mentioned is unusual. A spirit only gets that sort of power if they've been dead for some time or if they were powerful in life. And any spirit that's been around on this plane for too long becomes twisted. I worry for you, especially since you've been a bit off these past few weeks. And because you're a magnet for danger, like a spirit beacon, as Matsuzaki-san put it."**

Mai rose on her tip toes to peck Naru on the lips, smiling softly at him.

" **Don't worry Naru. We've dealt with powerful cases before, and we're not going to be alone. This time, we're actually going in with some idea of what the entity can do. Besides, I've learned a lot since we got married and I'm more careful now. I also understand my powers better, so I can take care of myself."**

Naru looked doubtful, but after a minute he sighed and a teasing glint entered his eyes as he smirked.

"More careful are you? If I remember correctly, it was only two months ago that you were locked in a room with a vengeful ghost of a scorned lover. Wasn't it Takigawa-san that had to save you?" Mai blushed as her latest blunder was brought up and she lightly slapped Naru as she huffed, ignoring his amused chuckle.

" **Yeah well, if someone didn't rile me up, I wouldn't have run off."**

" **And if you had just listened to me, then I wouldn't have had to point out your faults."**

" **Why you-"**

Mai lunged towards Naru, intent on teaching her jerk of a husband a lesson, but he neatly side-stepped her and returned her glare with his usual droll look, though she could see the amusement in his eyes.

"If you're quite finished acting like a child, breakfast is ready." Grumbling, the cinnamon eyed woman followed the subject of her ire towards the dining room, though her anger disappeared as she saw Alexis sitting at the table.

"Hey, how are you? Could you get some sleep last night?" Mai winced as the young woman looked up with dark bags under her eyes, but she returned the tired smile she received.

"A bit thanks. I'm better now that I've calmed down. It helps to know that Doctor Davis is going to take over this case personally. Sorry, I've never even introduced myself. I'm Alexis Reid, an intern to Professor Davis."

Mai shook the woman's hand as she introduced herself.

"Mai Davis, Oliver's wife and chief psychic of Shibuya's Psychic Research." The woman's eyes widened a bit and then she smiled.

"Oh, so you're Mai. Professor Davis talks about you a lot and I've read Doctor Davis' case study on you." Mai blushed a bit as she was reminded of the academic paper Naru had wrote on her assortment of powers, that he had published a year after their marriage.

"Oh, eh, yeah. Thanks, I guess…?" Mai buttered her toast as Naru smirked at her embarrassed reaction and she glared at him as Alexis continued talking about the research Naru had published in that paper. She wasn't surprised to see the woman was a fan of Naru, though she did appreciate that it seemed to be an intellectual appreciation rather than the usual romantic ones.

"Oliver, you and Mai should get going; the taxi I called has arrived. All the necessary equipment is already on site, so if you have your bags, you can go." Quickly swallowing the last bite of her toast, Mai downed her orange juice and made sure she had her dream diary in her handbag for easy access. Saying goodbye to a worried Luella and Alexis, Mai followed Martin outside, Naru at her side.

"Remember, if I don't hear from you within a week, I'm bringing in the big guns."

"Father, no need to sound like a bad movie." Rolling his eyes at his father's melodramatics, Naru climbed into the taxi as Mai followed.

"Bye Martin, hopefully this will be over soon." Waving as the taxi pulled away, Mai leaned back against the seat as the smell of tobacco and stale air invaded her nose. She hated taxis. A thump and something landing on her lap snapped her out of her ruminations and she looked down to find four files on her lap.

"Read those before we get there. It's the file on each of the psychics on-site already. You're going to need it if we're working with them."

Nodding, she cracked open the first file and started reading about her future teammates.

Firstly, there was Alisha Malakar, a 22-year old Hindu woman. She had the ability of Pyrokineses, meaning she could manipulate fire and using it in tandem with her traditional religious prayers, she could exorcize spirits. This ability and her shrew intelligence had led to her becoming a full-time employee at BSPR, even though she was still in her last year of studies.

Next, there was Emily Taylor, another intern of 20 years who came from America. The woman had the ability commonly referred to as Energy Medicine, where she basically used her own energy to heal another person. However, Emily's stamina wasn't much to speak of and usually she couldn't heal something big. Second in her class to Alexis, she was innovative and intelligent, though it has been mentioned that she was easily distracted.

After her came Cian O'Brien, an Irish employee of 25-years. He was the group's medium, though his main talent was that of telepathy. There was a warning in the file that due to the concentration it took him to control his telepathy, he was often quite absent-minded. Another warning was about his Hemophobia, which could overwhelm him and cause him to lose control of his powers. Otherwise he was mild-mannered and kind.

The last member of the group was their tech guy, who had the ability of Apportation, though it was limited. Twenty-three year old Rhys Foster's ability to materialize, teleport or disappear an object was only possible if this object was within five meters of him. The closer the object, the more control he had over exactly where it teleports or materializes. The British man was another full-time employee of BSPR and had started working the same time as Alisha and both of them a year after Cian.

As the Davis mansion was located at the edge of Cambridge, so as to be closer to BSPR's affiliated university, the University of Cambridge, the ride to Bethlem Royal Hospital took a little more than two hours. By the time they reached the toll gate, Mai had closed the last file as she stared out the window of the taxi, her mind absorbing the incredible group she would be working with.

It seemed as if Alexis had no specific psychic power, but was a formidable researcher and wanted to follow in Naru's footsteps to make Parapsychology a type of recognised science. Making herself comfortable, Mai settled in for the rest of the drive, reading one of her psychology textbooks. As a student herself at Tokyo Metropolitan University in the division of Psychology and Pedagogy, she still had to study even though she was on a short break, though she admits that she had been procrastinating her return to the world of manic studying.

After another half an' hour, Naru looked up from his own book on interesting paranormal case studies through history, particularly those conducted at Bethlem Royal Hospital, to see Mai gently breathing in and out as she slept, her book open on her lap. Reaching over, he placed her dainty bookmark in place before stowing the book in her handbag. Tucking a strand of hair behind her ear, Naru smiled softly at his slumbering wife, his eyes gentle when no one can see. He sighed imperceptibly as he returned to his book, his mind on his personal trouble magnet.

He had a feeling this case was going to be a particularly dangerous one, and he was not going to deny Mai the sleep she might not get in the upcoming days.

GH

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, so this chapter was more of a filler with vital information, rather than anything really interesting. Still, I hope to hear your thoughts regardless, so please review!


	4. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, sorry for the late update guys! I wrote my second-to-last Uni exam today and the entire day, I've been feeling as if I'm forgetting something and just now I remembered, I have to post this chapter. I see from my update date and publish date that I'm waffling between Monday and Tuesday apparently. For future reference, it's supposed to be on Monday.
> 
> And so, enjoy!

**Chapter 3**

It was snowing when Naru and Mai finally arrived at the large red brick building and Naru reluctantly had to shake Mai awake. She was still rubbing her eyes as she sat up, watching sleepily as Naru paid the taxi driver and got their bags. Stretching, Mai helped Naru carry their meagre possessions to the gate security building as the taxi drove away and she got her first look at the site they'd be investigating. The main building was directly in front of her, with another building to the left side and a cluster of trees to the right. She could see a path stretching to the back of the main building, but her thoughts weren't occupied by what lied beyond it, but rather the hospital itself.

From the front, it looked quite innocent, not showing the horrors it halls contained within. Built with red bricks in the Baroque architecture style, it had multiple small white windows on the facade and a large double doorway situated beneath a rectangular cream archway, with pillars encasing the large arched window above the doorway. Neatly trimmed bushes grew halfway up the walls and precise flowerbeds lined the anterior of the building. In front of the building was a small roundabout that was filled with plants, though they weren't in bloom as it was winter, and a fountain-like statue in the middle that also contained some greenery. Two chimneys flanked the main roof and a miniature clock tower was situated in the middle of them.

All in all, it looked quite professional and unassuming;  _if_  one didn't know its history or what was happening in one of the unoccupied wings at this moment.

Turning back to Naru, Mai spotted one of BSPR's camera's standing inside the small security building, where it wouldn't be harmed by the elements; so, ignoring Naru's explanation to the guard, she walked towards the camera, checking that it wasn't damaged. She then got out a spare tape she had packed in her bag just for this purpose. Switching it out with the tape inside the camera, she pocketed the used one. She doubted they would get any relevant information on this camera, but better to have looked at it and found nothing that to have leaved it and missed something.

"Mai, we're good to go. The manager is coming to meet us and show us to the wing where the rest of the team are." Nodding absent-mindedly, Mai walked with Naru towards the main entrance, where the manager was apparently meeting them and couldn't help but smile at the worried glance Naru flashed at her. To anyone else, it might have looked neutral, but the tension around Naru's mouth and the slight wrinkle near his eyes told her he was feeling some measure of concern.

Squeezing his hand in reassurance, she could see the muscles around his mouth relaxing, allowing him to revert to his professional self. It always amazed her how easily she was able to read him now, though she knew it was mainly due to four years of marriage and observing his every mannerism.

"Do you feel anything?" Taking some time to mull over Naru's question, Mai was forced to reluctantly shake her head.

"No, nothing. There's no ominous feeling like with the Urado case and neither the site nor buildings make me feel scared or uneasy. In fact, it only feels a bit… impersonal, maybe; nothing else. Though, if I compare it to that case two years ago… Yeah, it feels a bit like that. Like when we finished the Mitoyoshi case and the building was cleansed, leaving it with no personality almost…"

Despite her rambled answer, she knew that Naru would understand her, as the case two years ago had not necessarily been a hard one to solve, but rather a gruesome one. A house built quite recently was reported to be haunted by the newly moved in family and, with a bit of investigation, they found out why. Turns out that the children, of the family that had commissioned the house, had all been murdered one night during a burglary that had gone wrong. The burglars had held the children hostage while their parents were out and told the oldest one to bring them all the valuables in the house. For each ten minutes that went by without her being able to deliver these valuables, they would kill one of her siblings in front of her, before killing her.

She had four younger siblings…

Needless to say, the eldest daughter, being only eight herself, had been unable to move on and had thrown the equivalent of a spiritual rage, unable to accept what had happened to her and her siblings. The house, before the cleansing, had felt heavy and depressing, as if it was stained by its history. After the cleansing however, the building had lost all of those feelings, almost as if it was a blank slate, wiped of its history.

This was the feeling Mai was getting from the hospital. As if all the previous exorcisms and cleansings had wiped the building of all its spiritual history, leaving it empty as if it was newly built. It was quite an unsettling feeling to have of a building that's purportedly haunted and it seemed like Naru shared her unease by the look on his face.

"Ah, you must be Mr. and Mrs. Davis, I presume. I'm Mr. Collins, the manager here at Bethlem Royal Hospital." A thin man with a stern face and a smart suit walked forwards as he held out his hand to greet Naru. Mai got the feeling he was a man used to being listened to, as he had a no-nonsense air around him.

"A pleasure. I'm sorry for the inconvenience our team has made upon you and your workers Mr. Collins. We'll work as speedily as possible to ensure this case doesn't receive undue attention."

"Please see that you do. Now, if you'll follow me, I'll take you to where your team is, though your father told me I'm only to deliver you to the side door and not enter the building myself…?"

It was obvious Mr. Collins was quite confused by Martin's statement, but Mai didn't listen to Naru's vague deflection, instead preferring to watch the grounds they were walking by. They were walking along the main building, where the Bethlem Museum of the Mind now was, towards a small corpse of trees on the right. Though they called their site of investigation a side wing, it wasn't actually connected to the main building, but rather hidden among the trees.

Reportedly, it was a separate building where they had kept some of the more dangerous and unhinged patients, but the records were quite spotty and as such, not all the information could be trusted. Mai looked upon the medium sized rectangular building, still not feeling the usual clench in her gut to tell her something was amiss. It stood quietly and unassumingly between the trees and if it wasn't for the general feeling of neglect the building gave, she would have thought it was just another normal part of the hospital.

"Well, there you go. It's not as large as the man building, but it's still quite an important part of the history. We want to restore it so that it could be put to use, but unfortunately we need you guys to investigate it, so that Mr. Bailey can be satisfied. If that's all, I still have important work that needs seeing to, so I'll be on my way."

With that, Mr. Collin briskly walked away, his back straight and his stride sure. Mai was feeling a bit guilty about the relief she felt at the stern man's absence, since he hadn't been rude per say, but decided to put it behind her as Naru inspected the building. She could see the front door, innocuously facing them, as well as a broken window on the far side of the building.

_That must be where Alexis broke through…_

"Well, let's get started with the measurements first, so we have something to compare their map on the inside with." For the next hour, Naru and Mai measured the outside of the house, marked the locations of the windows and single door on the paper floorplan, leaving the inside blank, except for the little they could see through the windows. Finally, there was no more that they could document from the outside.

"Mai, be prepared for anything. Also, as soon as you feel something, tell me. No keeping it to yourself until 'you're sure it's relevant'." Flushing at Naru's reminder about her tendency to keep things to herself until she was absolutely certain it would help the case, she cheerfully replied in the affirmative, trying to hide her anxiety as her husband's black clad figure walked up to the front door.

The door swung open silently, its hinges well-oiled by the caretaker, Mr. Bailey, and the cinnamon haired woman looked around the entrance hall. It was quite small, with doors in the front and left and right of her. It was still eerily quiet and though Mai could see another of their camera's standing in the corner, there was no greeting from the other researchers. With one last glance at Naru, Mai took the door wedge they had brought with and wedge it beneath the front door, making sure the door stayed open.

Going to work quickly, Mai and Naru took the entrance hall measurements, adding it to their drawn map. At this point in time, they were still certain that the spirit was unaware of them and took the time to make a map that they knew was uninfluenced by any hallucinations.

"Right, according to Miss Reid, they made their base in Lab 3, which is through the door across from us and then the second door on our left. Let's go, the sooner we find the rest of the team, the better."

Opening the door across from them, Mai followed her husband and boss down the long corridor, walking past Lab 1 on her left and Lab 2 on her right, before they reached Lab 3 and 4. Mai could see Naru roughly sketching in the corridor on their map, measuring it with his strides as he walked and guessing the rest. Opening the left side door, they entered to find the base, with the computer monitors set up and papers strewn across the three desks in the room.

Across from them was an observation window looking out into a decrepit lab room, filled with an old gurney, some rusted chains and broken desks. A cup of still steaming tea coffee stood in front of the monitors, but otherwise, it was empty.

"Hmmm, seems like they all went out. I wonder if they'll be back soon, or if we should go look for them." Mai mused out loud. Naru didn't reply, as he just walked over to the desks, rummaging and reading through the papers. He seemed to have found the buildings blueprints, as he was comparing two pages, but Mai wasn't overly concerned with her husband's actions.

The psychic didn't want to admit it, but she was feeling more unsettled by the minute, not because her intuition told her something was off, but rather because her intuition wasn't telling her anything. It was as if the building wasn't haunted.

Clicking on the keyboard, she quickly flipped through the monitors and different cameras, trying to find their wayward team. She found the camera that was connected to the security house at the gate and saw it displaying a frozen image of her and Naru. It had probably stopped working as soon as she had finished changing the tape. Reaching into her backpack, she took out the old tape and placed it on the table for later viewing, before she continued her search.

It was as she was watching a camera that had been placed in the right-side corridor, between the lab rooms and the patient rooms, that she found them. Four people were crowded around a gate that cut them off from the main hallway and they were surrounded by what looked like a fine white mist. Without waiting to see what happened further, Mai immediately turned for the door.

"Naru! Hurry, they're in trouble!" Without ensuring that her husband was following her, which she was sure he would, Mai about flew out of the room, running towards the topmost door at the corridor, which would lead to the back of the building, and ripped it open. Uncertain for a moment where she should go to, a panicky voice drew her attention to the right, and without sparing a glance behind her, she tore down the hallway.

As the voices got closer, she began to make out separate voices and saw a large metal gate where the hallway would branch off. The gate was closed, as she had seen on the monitor, but on the other side of it were two men and two women, with one of each chanting. The chanting woman, darker skinned with long black hair, looked like she was coated in a flame cloak, while the man seemed to be actually trying to talk to the spirit, which Mai couldn't see with her bare eyes. The other man was fiddling at the gate, his movements jerky as the last girl, who had platinum blonde hair, urged him on in a panicked voice.

Lifting her hands, Mai started Bou-san's chant, her voice strong and echoing around her.

"Nau mak san manda bazara dan kan. _Nau mak san manda bazara dan kan. Nau mak san manda bazara dan kan!"_

Mai lifted her right hand up in front of her body, two fingers held out.

"Rin! Pyou! Tou!-" By now, the 23-year old could feel the slightly oppressive, heavy feeling of the entity and her gut immediately clenched. It was surrounding her body, pressing against her curiously, but as she chanted the Nine Cuts, it recoiled slightly.

" _-Shah! Kai! Chin!-"_  The four people in front of her had by this time turned around, three of them looking at her with wide, surprised eyes and one with narrowed eyes, but she didn't pay them any mind as she finished the chant.

" _-Retsu! Zai! ZEN!"_

Slashing her hand horizontally in front of her, she yelled out the last Cut, her voice echoing around her in the confined hallway and with one last resistant push, the spirit disappeared from her senses, though she was certain it wasn't defeated yet. As soon as the spirt was gone, the metal doorway gate clicked open, making it seem as if it had never been locked.

Sighing, Mai straightened from her defensive stance she had automatically assumed as she had neared the gate and her shoulders relaxed. She smiled reassuringly at the still surprised BSPR employees before her and the woman who was still cloaked in fire, whom Mai assumed was Alisha, broke the silence.

"Who are you? What are you doing here? How di-"

"That's quite enough Miss Malakar." Mai cringed as Naru's frosty cold voice crackled from behind her and she sheepishly turned to see his carefully concealed, but livid expression. His body was straight and tightly strung, while his fists were subtly clenched.

" **Ahhh… Naru, I'm sorry. I just… I saw them and I couldn't le-"**

" **We'll discuss your idiotic tendency to run off later Mai.**  Right now, let's move to the base, where we can talk properly." Mai flinched minutely and shrugged sheepishly at her still baffled new teammates, before contritely following Naru down the hallway. She immediately heard a scrambling behind her and four pairs of footsteps following them. She was also relieved to find that Alisha had extinguished her flame cloak, no matter how impressive it was. It had started getting hot in the confined space they were in.

As soon as they entered the base, Naru turned and leaned against the desk, his expression stony. This time, it was the platinum blond who spoke up first.

"You're Oliver Davis right! O my gosh, it's such an honour to meet you, Professor Davis always talks about you and I've read your books and-"

A sharp jab to her side had the woman snap her mouth close, as she glared balefully at the hazel-eyed man who elbowed her as he saw Naru's expression become frostier. Mai couldn't help but giggle at their behaviour, reminding her of her own team back home.

"Naru, put them out of their misery, they didn't do anything wrong. Hello, my name is Mai Davis, it's nice to meet you. Sorry about Naru's mood, he's angry that I ran off. Give him a bit of time and he'll be back to his normal self; not that it's much of an improvement mind you." Mai threw her husband a sly glance, her lips tilted up in a teasing grin and after a few tense seconds, Naru sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose as his shoulders relaxed. The room became slightly warmer as Naru's anger seeped away and the atmosphere lightened.

"Naru?" The hazel-eyed man questioned. Mai's face lighted up and she prepared herself for her great and enlightening speech, only to pout as the man himself intervened.

"A childish nickname my wife bestowed on me some years ago, do not pay it any attention." Sulking, Mai muttered under her breath about how if he wasn't such a narcissist, she wouldn't have called him that. The others, while looking interested in her mumbles, quickly snapped to attention as Naru cleared his throat in irritation, one finely shaped eyebrow lifting.

"Ah yes, uhm, I'm Rhys Foster and this twit here is Emily Taylor." The guy who had elbowed the platinum blond previously stated and Mai recognised him as the one who had been trying to get the gate open before. Emily waved as she was introduced and Rhys went on to point towards the other two team members.

"This guy over here is Cian O'Brian and this grumpy cat is Alisha Malakar. Please excuse her earlier rudeness, she takes some time to warm up." Rhys and Emily snorted as if he had just made some funny joke and Alisha glared at them as a small flame came to life on her finger tip, which shut them up quite quickly.

Mai couldn't help the amused smile which lighted up her face at the interaction between the group. A noise caught her attention ad she turned towards Naru, who had picked up a file earlier and had now snapped it shut to gain everyone's attention. Mai had noticed it was one of his favourite techniques and she felt like rolling her eyes at him. Judging by the amused glance he sent her, he was well aware of her exasperation.

"If we can put aside all the foolishness, then we can actually solve this case. Now, firstly, are these blueprints reliable?" Naru held up a large, thick paper and Mai saw the layout of the building for the first time.

The building was the shape of a perfect rectangle, with one main hallway running around the entire building and three corridors running vertically. The corridors to the left and right both had gates instead of doors at the top and bottom junctions connecting to the main hallway, as they led to the patient rooms, of which there was room 1-5 on the left side and room 6-10 on the right side. It was also via these corridors that one gained access to the main area of the lab rooms, of which there was four. The centre corridor was the only one that had access to the observation rooms, which were part of the labs, but cut-off by the observation windows of reinforced, one-way glass.

Mai felt sick looking at the symmetrical floorplan, which was obviously designed in such a way that the patients never had to leave their one corridor. She didn't even want to know what they did for bathroom, since the only one there was a small one located in the bottom left corner of the main hallway, presumably for the doctors and nurses. On the bottom right corner was a small kitchenette, not even walled, where one could make coffee and such. Mai assumed that the patients' food was brought from the main building.

"Yes, we got that from the hospital and had verified it on the first day. After the fourth day, it became a bit more difficult to verify it with the naked eye, as our perceptions became distorted, but with that blueprint we created the GPS-device." Naru nodded, his eyes scanning the plan to memorise it, though it was fairly straightforward. Finally, he looked up.

"Right, tell me what happened since Miss Reid escaped. Last we heard Miss Malakar was still missing. Also, Mr Foster, can you make another such GPS-device? Miss Reid lost the previous one sometime during her escape."

Looking between themselves, it was Rhys who answered, seeming to be the spokesperson for the group. "Um, I don't think I'll be able to make another one, unless I dismantle some of the equipment we have here. I used up all my spare parts. About what happened, well, I assume Alexis told you of our plan right?" Seeing Naru nod smartly, he continued.

"Ok, so when all three of us woke up together in one of the patient rooms after trying to escape, we determined that Alexis had made it through since she wasn't there with us. Or rather, we hoped she made it through and wasn't just kidnapped like Alisha. All we could do was try and find Alisha before it was too late. We found her about three hours later, lying unconsciously in one of the patient rooms. She hadn't been there before, but we didn't question her appearance much, just happy she wasn't seriously injured. This morning, we decided to investigate the room where she was found in, but as soon as we set foot in it, we got attacked. We tried to retreat, but it locked the gate. That's when you two arrived."

"And what happened to Miss Malakar while she was missing?"

"She tells it better than I do." Everyone turned towards the scowling woman, waiting for her to elaborate on her kidnapping, Naru especially impatient to get the details. She did so immediately, speaking in a clipped tone.

"Well, I was walking along the main hallway when I was attacked. The temperature had dropped considerably, which says something since I usually don't notice it when the temperature drops, and my vision turned red, before I fell unconscious. When I woke up, it was to see a white padded room, like the ones the patients stayed in, except it was entirely empty and smaller. There was also no door that I could see, just seamless wall.

"I tried finding an exit, but I hadn't been up for long, before the entity came. I couldn't see anything, but the room became colder again and I cloaked myself in my fire. No matter what sort of attack I did, the spirit didn't retreat, instead, it seemed to become agitated. Right after I threw a fireball at it, it seemed to have enough, because a scream resounded in the room and I was knocked back into the wall. The energy the spirit used knocked me out and when I came to, I was in another room that I recognized as a normal patient room."

"Have you found this room you were kept in initially, or do you have any idea where it is?" The team shook their heads and Naru sighed.

"Right, no one is to go anywhere alone. Make a habit of counting your steps starting now, so that you roughly know where you are even when your senses betray you. This s the measurements Mai and I took outside the house, so use that for reference." Mai stood back as the four people crowded around Naru, listening to his explanation.

She was quite amused to see that Emily was a full-blown fangirl of Naru's and his looks enamoured him to her even more. The initial flash of jealously had long since disappeared, as Mai knew Naru loved her and would never leave her, much less for someone who posed no challenge. Naru might say otherwise, but she knew he appreciated her guts and that she stood up to him. Turning, she grabbed the kettle and started preparing some tea. Naru would be barking orders for a while more and tea would only help him relax and protect the rest of the team from his irritation.

She was certain this was the start of a long day.

GH

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, what did you think? Please ask if you don't understand something, I'll be happy to explain. I tried to keep things as close to reality as possible, though Mr. Collin/Bailey are my own creation and this extra wing doesn't really exist on the grounds.
> 
> I'm excited to hear what you thought about Naru's preparations and your first impressions of everyone, though the next chapter will be a bit more thorough in that regard. Please review!


	5. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, you guys wouldn't believe how busy I am. With my exams ending tomorrow, you would think I can look forward to a looong Christmas/summer holidays (almost 3 months) but nooo, I just had to get myself 2 jobs, that keeps me busy 7 days a week *sigh*
> 
> Anyways, Enjoy!

**Chapter 4**

Digging through the bag of food she and Naru had brought along, Mai grumbled as she couldn't find the energy bar she had packed in. It had been the first time she had seen a carrot cake flavoured one and she immediately wanted to try it, but now the damn thing eluded her. Her stomach grumbled in protest and even though all the other snacks were laid out before her, she was determined to get her bar.

"Hey Mrs Davis." Looking up at the soft voice, she saw Cian coming to sit opposite her, a shy smile on his face. She returned his smile, not stopping her quest for the bar as she answered.

"Please, call me Mai, Cian. Can I do anything for you?"

"Ah, no, I ju-" Mai growled in frustration, holding her finger up in the universal 'wait' signal as she twisted around to face her husband where he stood by the monitors. He was watching Alisha and Emily's progress as they checked the patient rooms on the left side for any hidden doors or rooms.

"Naru, did you eat my carrot cake energy bar?" Mai demanded, ignoring the droll look Naru gave her.

"Who in their right mind would eat a carrot cake energy bar?" Mai folded her arms as she gave the black clad man her best glare. Rolling his eyes, the man strode over to the desk where Mai's backpack lied, zipping it open and rummaging around before he extracted the much sought after carrot cake bar.

He tossed it over to her, before returning to the monitors, his fingers flying over the keys as he typed his observations without looking down.

"Oh… Thank!" Mai blushed sheepishly as she turned back to Cian, locking eyes with his blue ones.

"Sorry, please continue." She ignored the hidden laughter in his eyes and instead concentrated on what he said after clearing his throat softly.

"Uhm, I didn't need anything really, but I just wanted to know… Is everything Dr Davis wrote in his paper true? About your abilities?" Mai rubbed the back of her head, still not used to people actually knowing about her before she ever met them.

"Yeah, I guess. I mean, some of them aren't officially recognized, per say, like my intuition, but yeah, Naru's paper was pretty accurate."

"So that means… Wow, to have latent ESP, pre- and post-cognitive dreams, along with astral projection and being the perfect medium… that's just… wow. What about the apportation? Dr Davis' most recent paper said it wasn't yet confirmed?"

"Yeah, though we are leaning towards it. There have been instances where I would teleport an object from one place to another, though it does have its limits. Like, Rhys can only teleport objects within five metres of himself, I can only teleport an object through my astral projection and it has to be something I had on me at the time I went to sleep."

Cain looked quite amazed and she giggled as the telepath searched for words.

"That is really amazing. Most people have maybe one or two abilities, but you're like the psychic fruitcake…Oh! I-I'm sorry, I didn't mea-" Cian's expression turned horrified as he realised he had called her a fruitcake, his cheeks reddening as he stuttered. His hasty apologies were halted however by Mai's laughter.

"Don't worry about it! I've been called worse and in this case, it's probably closer to the truth. I am quite like a psychic smoothie." Cian snorted, his eyes twinkling as he smiled shyly. Mai smiled back, contently munching her energy bar as her eyes flitted around the room. The bar tasted kind of funny, but she still enjoyed it, though she couldn't say what exactly about it she enjoyed. She listened contently as Cian came a bit out of his shell, telling her about previous cases and other astral walkers he had met. It was as his soft voice told her about his time in Australia, that she heard it…

_**Baby, baby, naughty baby; Hush, you squalling thing, I say…** _

Mai snapped straight, her eyes flicking through the entire room quickly as the eerie lullaby echoed around her and she jumped up, turning in a full circle as she searched.

_**And he breakfasts, dines, rely on't; Every day on naughty people…** _

Cian was starting to stand up, but Mai ignored his concerned inquiries. Seeing as he wasn't reacting to the  _bloody creepy song_  coming from  _nowhere_ , she deducted that only she could hear it.

_**Limb from limb at once he'll tear you; Just as pussy tears a mouse…** _

The hairs on the back of her neck stood up at the child's high voice and she strode towards the monitors, ignoring Cian's worried form behind her, as well as Naru's deep voice.

_**And he'll beat you, beat you, beat you; And he'll beat you into pap,** _

Her eyes scanned the monitors that showed Alisha and Emily as her gut clenched further. She knew she had to do something, or something terrible would happen. Pressing down the button of the walkie-talkie, she immediately started speaking.

"Alisha, Emily, you need to get to base  _right now_! Leave what you're doing and head back, but keep your senses alert!"

_**And he'll eat you, eat you, eat you…** _

"But Mai," Emily's high voice crackled through the walkie-talkie, "This is the last patient room to check, then we're finished anyway. Can't we come back then? I don't want to have to do it all o-"

" _You're not in the patient room, you're in Lab 2, right next to the observation room!_  Come back NOW!"

… _ **Every morsel…**_

"Wha-"

Mai cursed as Emily's voice gave way to white noise and looking at the monitors, she saw the large hook hanging from a chain on the roof tremble from where it was fastened to the wall. Knowing she would never get there in time, she spun around towards Rhys, who had come up to the monitors at the commotion.

"Rhys, go to the observation room of Lab 2 and get as close to the glass as you can. You need to deflect that hook, otherwise it will smash into Alisha and Emily. Cian, try to contact them and warn them. No questions,  _just do it_! GO!"

_**Snap.** _

Rhys bolted, Cian following him as Mai turned back towards the monitors. She was aware of Naru trying to get the walkie-talkie to work to no avail and Mai could feel the tension racking up in her body as the hook shook more and more. The two women were facing away from it, also fiddling with their walkie-talkie and they wouldn't see it in time. Mai's heart seemed to sink as the hook broke loose, as if jerked by something, swinging towards its unsuspecting victims.

… _ **Snap.**_

Mai couldn't close her eyes or turn away from the scene, a scream stuck in her throat. Alisha had turned, seeing the incoming danger and managed to push Emily away, but by that time the hook was upon her and she had nowhere left to go.

… _ **SNAP…**_

GH

Naru was checking the progress of Alisha and Emily as they checked the second to last room for any trapdoors. Mai was sitting on the couch, talking to Cian and Rhys was fiddling with something at the other desk as he read through the reports Naru and Mai had brought with them. The women were just entering the last room when Cian's worried voice caught his attention and he turned to see Mai almost running towards him, her eyes holding unvoiced panic.

" **Mai, what's wrong?"**  Reverting to Japanese, as he knew Mai sometimes forgot to respond to English when she was stressed, he growled lowly when he got no response. It was as she picked up the walkie-talkie, about shouting at the two women to return, that Naru's gaze was drawn back to the monitors.

He blinked.

Instead of them being in the last patient room as he thought, they were in the lab diagonally across to them, standing close to the observation window. As Mai's voice became higher in pitch, Naru saw what had her so panicked. He paid no attention to her barked orders, keeping his eyes glued to the jerking hook that posed a danger to two of their teammates.

Picking up the discarded walkie-talkie, he turned the knobs and dials, trying to get the blasted device to work before it was too late. However, the white noise persisted and it was only Mai's intake of breath that caused his head to snap up as the hook came loose. Swinging downwards, the heavy object gained momentum as it hurtled closer to the two women. He watched as Emily was pushed aside and horror filled him at the knowledge that one of his team would be dead or heavily injured, with no way to get help from outside.

Just as he was certain that nothing could be done, that he would be looking at Alisha's broken body in the next second, the hook disappeared, the chain swinging harmlessly over Alisha's head, now too short to reach the frozen woman. Naru let out a silent breath of relief, aware of Mai's body sagging next to him as the tension drained from her.

Rhys had made it in time.

GH

"What the  _fuck_  just happened!?" Mai immediately shot up as she hovered over the two women who had just returned from the Lab. Luckily, she could see no obvious injuries and she felt the last of the tension lining her body fade away as she sat down.

"Apparently, both you and I were having a hallucination. It was only when Mai mentioned it that I realised you weren't in the patient room. Seems like you were never in any patient rooms, but rather walking aimlessly till you arrived at lab 2. When we went over the video feed, it showed that you were never even close to the left-side patient rooms. How Mai knew something was wrong is another thing."

Naru's frosty voice caused Alisha, who was hot with rage, to cool down a bit. His own irritation at being tricked by the spirit was making the room become slightly colder, for which Mai was silently grateful for, as Alisha was like a miniature sun on her own.

"I heard a song…" Everyone, minus Naru, looked confused and Mai sighed, settling down to explain what happened. "There was a child's voice, singing a lullaby. One of those old British Nursery rhymes, those that are so gruesome, you know. I just had a really bad feeling and my intuition told me that something was wrong. So when I saw Alisha and Emily in the lab room instead of the patient room, I knew something had to be wrong, as Naru didn't tell me that they would investigate the labs today."

Naru nodded as he jotted down Mai's words, making sure he had everything as she said it. "Wait," Emily's voice interrupted her, "This was all based on your intuition? Your gut feeling? Why should that be important? I mean, I thought that you were basically useless unless you're sleeping?"

If possible, Naru's glare became even colder as galaxy blue eyes bored into the blonde girl and Mai breathed deeply to quell her urge to scream at the woman. She couldn't contain her biting words however.

"Well, seeing as my intuition was right and I possibly saved your life, I would think you would trust my gut." Emily sneered and Mai lamented the fact that Naru had annoying fangirls who thought they were better than her. This was not the first time such a situation had occurred. Surprisingly, it was Alisha who stopped Emily's retort.

"Her warning, along with Rhys and Cian, saved your and my life. I would appreciate it if you kept your poisonous words to yourself. After all, if Mai hadn't warned Rhys and Cian, Cian wouldn't have been able to contact me with his telepathy." Mai snorted in amusement as Emily gaped and then sulked hatefully and she felt like laughing when she saw the approving glint in Naru's eyes as he watched Alisha shut the blonde up.

"Mr. Foster, what happened with you and Mr. O'Brian?" Rhys straightened at Naru's demanding tone, his face uncharacteristically serious as he replied.

"Well, as soon as Cian realised what was happening, he contacted Alisha to warn her. He had some trouble getting through, as the spirit's presence created some interference, so by the time he reached her, she had just enough time to push Emily out of the way. That was about when we entered the observation room and I arrived just in time to teleport the hook into the observatio0n room. I had seen that the chain would be too short without the hook to cause any damage, so opted to try teleporting only the hook, as it's quite difficult for me to teleport a moving object, even more impossible when that object is fastened to the wall, like the chain was."

Writing the last bit in, Naru snapped his notebook closed and spoke up, his voice still a bit strained to Mai, who knew what it sounded like.

"Right. Tomorrow, Mr. O'Brian will try and channel the spirit and if that doesn't work, Miss Malakar will perform her exorcism. We'll do it in Lab 2, as you have noted previous activity in that room. For now, make any preparations that might be needed. Miss Taylor, you are on monitor duty. Mr. Foster, see if you can fix the walkie-talkies, they are still not functioning. Mai, make me some tea and then go to sleep. We need information."

Rolling her eyes at her demanding husband, she stood up and filled the kettle using the large bottles of water she and Naru had brought. Getting out six cups, as she was planning to make some tea for everyone, she waited as the water boiled.

"Sorry, Mrs. Davis?" Turning, Mai was surprised to see the hot-headed Alisha standing before her, looking more uncertain than she had ever imagined the strong woman could be.

"Yes?" She asked as she poured the hot water into the teapot, waiting for the tealeaves to steep. Her welcoming tone seemed to give the mocha-coloured woman some of her confidence back, as her voice became stronger.

"I just wanted to thank you. Without your warning, I would likely be dead by now, along with that chit. I'm sorry for being rude when we first met, I'm a suspicious bitch, I know." Laughing a little, Mai waved her hand as she answered, still chuckling.

'No, no, don't worry. I look after my team and despite his manner, Naru does as well. So no thanks needed." A smile lighted the other woman's face and the chocolate-eyed girl marvelled at how pretty her stern face became when she smiled. She was like Naru in that regard.

"Even so, thank you. You have my gratitude and I owe you a dept." Before she could protest further, the fiery woman walked off, leaving Mai gaping behind her. Huffing, she turned back to the tea, pouring it and placing it on the tray as an unnoticeable smile played on her face. Seemed like the hard exterior wasn't all there was to the black-haired beauty.

Carrying the tray over to the desk, she handed each member their cup, ignoring the way Emily snubbed the tea cup placed at her elbow, before holding Naru's out to him. Just as he was about to take it, she withdrew her hand, raising an eyebrow in imitation of her husband. He sighed, rolling his eyes before he scowled at her.

" **What's the magic word…?"**  She sang, delighting in how the lines on his face became deeper, before he bit out a  **"please"**  and she happily handed the cup over. Dropping a kiss on his hair, she flounced away, ignoring the eyes she knew was burning into her back. Dropping onto the couch, she sipped at her own cup as she relaxed, trying to calm her mind so that she could go to sleep after she finished her tea. Despite her irritation at the way Naru had said it, she knew her dreams would be the most reliable source of information.

Placing her empty cup on the table, she lied down, closing her eyes in an effort to fall into oblivion. When after twenty minutes, she was still wide awake, she groaned and threw and arm over her eyes, a gusty sigh leaving her. Sensing someone sitting down on the couch across her, she peeked underneath her arm to see Cian, who looked quietly amused.

"Having trouble sleeping?" Grunting, Mai nodded.

"Usually it's quite easy, but for some reason my mind refuses to slow down! It keeps jumping around."

"Ah, I know the feeling." Mai considered the man across from her, before remembering that he was the one who had telepathy. "Ah, you mean with your telepathy? Is it hard blocking out other people's voices in your mind?"

"Ah, no, actually, I can't hear the thoughts of other people. I can't even hear them when they try and project themselves to me. My telepathy is very limited, in that it's a one way street. I can project my mind's voice, so to speak, into other people's minds. What makes my telepathy so hard to control, is rather my awareness of other minds. Though I cannot hear what people think, I can sense their minds, which is how I project my voice into their minds. When around a large group of people, I have to be careful that I don't accidently project my voice without meaning to, which is why I usually look absent-minded. A lot of people also doesn't trust me and don't believe me when I tell them I can't hear their thoughts, so it's easier to have the defence of being absent-minded in such cases."

Mai nodded in sympathy, as she had also hid behind her cheerful exterior on a number of cases and could so vaguely relate to Cian's troubles.

"I found that if I'm overwhelmed, it's easier to focus on one specific mind or object, as it calms me down. Problem is, I usually project my thoughts into that mind then. Generally, this isn't a problem, as my boyfriend usually fills that role for me, but he was sent on his own case and so I can't do that here. Luckily, there are so few minds here that I haven't been overwhelmed yet. Just hope it stays that way. But for you, that shouldn't be a problem, so see if focussing on one thing calms you down."

Searching the sincere sky blue eyes, the cinnamon-haired woman made up her mind as she spoke up again.

"Thanks, I'll try that. You know, if, while we're on the case, you start to feel overwhelmed, I wouldn't mind if you focused on my mind. I'll also know to help you then."

The 25 year old's eyes widened, as he stared at her in silent shock. She could see his adam's apple bopping as he swallowed. "Really, you wouldn't mind?"

"Nope." Mai answered, popping her 'p' as she smiled. Cian returned her smile and she realised that a tension, which she hadn't even known was lining his shoulders, left as he relaxed back into the couch.

"Thanks. Now, I'll stop keeping you from your efforts to sleep." Mai laughed with him, grinning as she settled down again and tried to follow Cian's advice. Keeping the image of Naru's softly affectionate face in her mind, a gentle smile pulled at her lips as she drifted off to sleep.

GH

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, the first attack happened and a bit more on the team dynamics was shown. I know, know, Emily looks like the cliché fangirl character, but I swear I tried to make her a bit unique, as it's not that she's always trying to be mean, she's just a bit judgemental, superior and has no filter/impatient. I hope you liked the chapter, as the next one has Mai's first dream and most of the case is revealed;) Please comment, I cannot survive without them!


	6. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, has it really only been a week? I feel like it's been longer since I've updated! Ah well, guess that's what being busy does to you, makes you forget the time. Sorry for the update so late in the day, I was kind of preoccupied:) 
> 
> Anyways, I hope you enjoy this chapter!

**Chapter 5**

" **Daemon, come here. Today, we have some more fun activities for you…"**

" **Daemon…"**

**Daemon…**

**Mai looked around her, her brows furrowed as she gazed into the darkness that she floated in. There were no will o wisps lighting up the astral plane, which Mai found unusual, but she could still hear the low female voice echoing around her.**

**Turning, she peered into each direction, hoping to find something that would indicate what she was here for.**

… _ **Daemon…**_

**Turning towards the voice of the woman, she found a small light in the distance, pulsing slightly, as if beckoning her to come closer. Cautiously, she slinked forwards, her eyes riveted to the innocent and kind light, glowing a light blue.**

" **Come now boy, it'll be over soon…"**

_**I don't want to…** _

**The appearance of a small boy's voice startled Mai and she recognized it as the voice that had sung the creepy lullaby, though it sounded much more childish now. Coming to a stop in front of the light, Mai could feel the shadows of it playing over her skin and, hesitating only a second longer, she reached out to touch it.**

**As soon as her finger touched the gently glowing light, it flared red, like spilled blood, and Mai had to close her eyes against the brightness, throwing up a hand to block the blinding glow. After a moment, she cautiously lifted her hand, looking around her curiously. She was in a lab room and surrounding her were two doctors wearing white coats and one nurse wearing a pale yellow uniform.**

**An unfamiliar fear filled Mai's mind and she realised she was much too short and her body too skinny. Glancing down, she saw small hands fisting a ragged flannel shirt, as knobby knees knocked together. Dirty blond hair was falling into her face as her toes curled in fear.**

" **Oh come now Daemon, you're already thirteen years old, big boys shouldn't be afraid of a doctor's appointment."**

**The boy, Daemon, stayed silent, though Mai could practically feel the despair and anger swirling around his mind, his body tense with anticipation. One of the doctors sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. He took off his spectacles to clean them and Mai felt the boy's body flinch as if struck.**

" **We do not have time for this today. Daemon, stop rebelling and get on the bed. Mary, take him."**

" **But Doctor Haslam, if we're not careful, he-"**

" **I don't care, just get the boy strapped up! I am a busy man Mrs Dale and I will not wait for some snivelling boy to find his courage. Now,** _ **strap him up**_ **!"**

" **Yes, Doctor." Mary's eyes held a measure of regret as she turned towards Mai and the body she inhabited stepped backwards, a small whimper escaping her lips. Before she could even think of running, the nurse had her arm in a firm grip and was gently dragging her over to a gurney. The young teen's struggling grew more pronounced, disjointed words falling from his lips as his frail body was easily lifted by the nurse and his arms, legs and neck was fastened to the gurney with thick leather straps. The last to be strapped down was his waist and silent tears ran down Mai's, the boy's, face.**

" **Oh stop snivelling Daemon. We're just trying to help you get better. You should be grateful. The outside world is a terrifying place, where people will eat you alive if you're not normal. And you, Daemon, are certainly not normal, just as your mother wasn't normal. Now hush... I said HUSH! Someone, get me a gag, I cannot concentrate with his whimpering in my ear."**

**Mai watched with horror as a ball-gag was roughly pushed into the teen's mouth, the ball stretching his mouth uncomfortable and pressing against his gums, causing more pain as time went on. The gag, having a strap that went around his head, could not even be spit out or moved to a slightly more comfortable position. By now, the boy's entire body was quivering and Mai could feel sweat beading on her forehead. The doctor spoke up again, addressing the nurse.**

" **Right Mary, you know the procedure. Write down my words exactly, for later perusal. Now, let's begin. September 19** **th** **, 1812, 11:02 a.m. Patient number is 20091799, named Daemon. This will be the second attempt at venesection, the previous attempt having no observable effects. Previous treatment includes rotational therapy, leeches, hydrotherapy, isolation, chaining and Electrostatic therapy. Doctor in charge of Patient 20091799 is Doctor Bryan Crowther, overseer is Doctor John Haslam. Nurse on hand is one Mary Dale. The time is now 11:03 a.m. Therapy will now commence."**

**The other doctor, who had been silent up till now, stepped forward and Mai's entire body about convulsed with the fear the boy felt. The mere sight of the thin man with his neatly parted hair, round spectacle and long, spidery fingers sent terror racing through her body and her tears became thicker. As Dr Crowther bent over the boy's prone body, Mai saw the glint of a scalpel as Mary came closer with a beaker and Doctor Haslam held a clipboard, making annotations.**

**Dr Crowther glanced at the boy once, the malicious and sick glint in his eyes causing Mai to recoil and a twisted smile graced his face as he brought down the scalpel. The first touch of the cold metal on her arm, drawing a line of ice across it, had the boy screaming, Mai's own voice merging with his.**

GH

Naru flipped through patient records in the small light of the lamp, the room quiet around him. The others, except for Alisha, had already gone to sleep; Emily sleeping on the couch opposite Mai, with Cian and Rhys sleeping soundly on the collapsible cots they had been given at the start of their investigation. Naru himself was sitting on the couch were Mai slept, her feet pressed against his thigh where she was curled up. He wasn't sure what Alisha was doing, but as she kept quiet, he didn't see the need to interrupt her, especially as she kept half an eye on the monitors.

A small moan had him looking down to see his wife grimacing in her sleep, her brow furrowed and sweat beading on her forehead. Conflicted thoughts raged in his mind, as he knew she was probably having a dream and he didn't want her to experience anything that happened in this building, knowing full well how bad the treatment could have been. On the other hand, letting her dream play out was the fastest way it get information and solve this case. Another moan interrupted his thoughts and he saw the cinnamon haired woman was twisting on the couch.

Enough was enough, they could get information elsewhere. Over the years Naru had made it his duty to memorise the signs Mai exhibited in her sleep, signs which let him gauge how bad her dreams usually were. After one case, where Mai had experienced consecutive first-person brutal deaths that had taken her months to overcome, he had vowed to himself to never let her experience something on that scale again, even if it was for the best of the case. So he had trained himself to see how her body twisted, how her moans heightened and her lashes fluttered, so that he would know when to wake her up.

And now was such a time.

Just as Naru made to wake Mai up, a blood-curdling scream ripped through the room, causing Emily to shoot upright, Cian to jerk awake and Rhys to roll off his cot with a startled squawk. Naru paid them no mind as he grabbed Mai's convulsing shoulders and he almost lost his grip when her body arched up.

" **Mai! Mai wake up! Damnit Mai!"**

"Dr Davis, look!" Cian panicked voice drew the dark haired man's attention to a patch of red blossoming on Mai's sweater, the entire arm of the sweater being stained by the crimson liquid. His heart in his throat, Naru pulled Mai's sleeve up to reveal her pale skin beneath it, a long precise cut gouged into her arm. He felt sick at the blood that spilled from the cut, the pink flesh that gaped agonizingly at him and the small glimpse of white bone that he saw.

"Miss Taylor, heal it, before she bleeds out! Do it now!"

Mai was still screaming, tears leaking from the corner of her eyes as they snapped open, unseeingly looking at something none of them could perceive. Naru watched in horror as a similar cut appeared on her other arm, gushing blood at an alarming rate.

"I can't, it- it's not working!" Naru growled, his worried gaze resting on his convulsing wife as she began losing her life before his eyes. Red started to slowly stain the centre part of her shirt and he felt too nauseous to lift it and see the cut he knew would lie on her abdomen. Alisha came around the couch, her face determined and before Naru could see what she was up to, her hand flashed out, a loud  _slap_ echoing through the now silent room. Mai blinked as she seemed to come by, her cheek red from the force of Alisha's slap. She drew in a shuddering breath, tears still streaming down her cheeks as her eyes flitted from person to person till she landed on Naru.

Seeing the hurt in her eyes, Naru momentarily ignored the severity of her injuries, as it had stopped bleeding and started to close up and pulled her up, enveloping her in his arms as he dared any of the other to comment. Holding her tightly, he didn't want to admit how fast his heart was beating, how concerned he had been when he saw her thrashing around and bleeding from a mysterious wound.

"Wait, Dr Davis, shouldn't we treat Mai's arm, she might die if she keeps bleeding like this! We should stop the blood!" Cian's freaked voice had Mai drawing a deep breath as she drew herself together, unlatching from her husband, but still keeping her body pressed against him.

"Wound?" she asked, but it was Naru who answered. "Do not worry Mr O'Brian, the wound is gone. A few seconds after Mai woke up, it disappeared, though the blood is still there. I take it that we were caught in another hallucination, either that or the spirit's connection was strong enough to bring part of Mai's dream over to reality. I personally am inclined to believe the first explanation, as Miss Taylor's healing didn't work, because there was nothing to heal. Now Mai, what did you dream?"

Mai was looking curiously at her ruined shirt, a disgusted grimace on her face. She glanced up at Naru's question, a thoughtful look coming over her face.

"Hmmm, it was a first person dream about a patient, a boy who was thirteen years old. His name was Daemon apparently."

"That's demon in Latin…Not the only translation, but one of the more common ones." Mai nodded at Naru's words, before continuing her story.

"Well, he was in a lab room with two doctors and a nurse, the nurse name seemed to be Mary Dale, while the two doctors were John Haslam and Bryan Crowther. The date was September 19th, 1812, around 11 in the morning."

"You seem to know an awfully lot of specific details. You wouldn't be making it up or assuming things right? After all, dreams aren't that precise or easy to remember." Mai scowled at the irritating platinum blonde and Naru could see her ire rising as her already fragile mind-set snapped at the woman's blasé words.

"Yes I'm sure. Do you want to know  _why_? Because I was having a  _first-person_ dream where the subject of my dream, a  _thirteen_  year old boy, was being experimented on and the sick doctors doing it, liked to hold  _records_  of what experiment they did when. So I'm pretty sure about all the information, including the fact that this boy was patient number 20091799 and had endured blood-letting, leeches, rotation therapy, shock treatment and water torture previously. In fact, I  _personally_  experienced how he was being tortured this time, having his body cut open and being drained of his blood in an attempt to get rid of his  _tainted_  blood!"

"Miss Taylor, you, as an investigator on this team and an intern dedicated to learning, should know who John Haslam and Bryan Crowther are. So instead of questioning my wife's information, rather ask what it means for the case, or else, be quiet if you do not have any meaningful input. My wife's been doing paranormal investigation for longer than you have studied it."

Emily pouted, crossing her arms and looking away as Mai smiled gratefully at Naru. Naru tried to calm himself down, knowing that snapping further at the idiotic woman wouldn't help the situation, especially as she didn't have any experience with Mai's abilities and instead he turned towards Mai. She was picking disgustedly at the material of her shirt, peeling the wet fabric from her skin and shuddering. Therefore, he was not that surprised when he heard her next words, though he was exasperated.

"Naru, I want to clean up and a shower would be nice. I know it's late, but I really want one now."

"Mai, it's too dangerous."

"Naru, come on, there haven't been any observations of this spirt being more active at night."

"Because no one was stupid enough to wander around the corridors at night. No Mai." Mai stared into Naru's eyes, her gaze stubborn and challenging. Naru was also glaring back, his face scowling as he folded his arms.

"I'll go with her, if that will help. We'll have to take the back door, since the spirit rarely lets anyone into the entrance hall in case they try to leave, but it should be fine if we take the long way around." Ma threw Naru a triumphant look as Alisha spoke up, daring him to deny her now. He sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose as he felt frustration well up in him.

"Fine. Mr Foster, did you get the walkie-talkie's functioning again?" At Rhys's affirmative reply, Naru handed one to Alisha, daring Mai to object. She, however, merely smiled at him, placing a butterfly kiss on his cheek before standing and grabbing a change of clothes, along with her toiletries. Sometimes he wondered why he tried to look out for Mai, why he loved her when she placed her own life in danger this way and… then she would smile at him, laugh and call "Naru!" like she was caressing his name, and he would fall deeper once again.

"Mr O'Brian," Naru called as soon as the two women were out of the room, "Watch their progress on the monitors, as you are the one most able to contact them should something go wrong." The introverted man nodded and moved over to the screens, pressing on the keyboard till he found the camera that showed their two female teammates. Naru went to the desk with all their files and reports, flipping through them in search of this illusive Patient 20091799, who was called Daemon and was thirteen years old in 1812.

Flipping through the patient files they had, he could find no mention of this daemon and Naru became more frustrated as he went along. He did realise, however, that the patient numbers seemed to be given based on the date that they were admitted to the hospital, with the day first, followed by the month and year. This meant that Daemon had to be admitted in 1799, on September 20th, but that made no sense to Naru, as he would have been a baby then. It would, in fact, have been the year of his birth.

After forty minutes of searching and just when Cian let him know Mai and Alisha was on their way back, did he find his first clue about their mysterious patient. The name 'Daemon' cropped up in the file of a female patient, who was admitted in March and diagnosed with severe insanity, so much that she had to be kept apart from the general patients. It was found in April that she was four months pregnant, but instead of aborting the child, the doctors opted to let her carry it to term, interested on the effects it will have on her psyche and the hysteria she exhibited. Daemon was the born on the 20th of September, 1799 and Naru felt sick knowing that this child was born and stayed in the insane asylum.

"I found Daemon's mother." Naru's ominous words echoed through the silent room, as if it carried a bad omen, right before the walkie-talkie crackled to life. Cian, who had turned towards Naru when he spoke, snapped back to the screens as Alisha's voice came out of the device.

"Mai collapsed!"

GH

Mai sighed in relief as the itchy, sticky feeling of dried blood disappeared as the hot water pounded on her back. She knew she shouldn't take long, but after the day and dream she had, she really wanted to just relax for a bit. The knowledge that Alisha was right outside and had volunteered to come with her further reassured her, so when she had finished scrubbing the dirt and blood of her skin and washed her hair, she couldn't help but luxuriate for a while. About twenty minutes later, she reluctantly turned off the water, thankful they still had electricity, that had been wired in a couple of decades ago, as she towel dried her hair and dressed in new clothes.

Stuffing her soiled sweater in a plastic bag, she mourned the loss, as it had been one of her favourites. She couldn't believe only a day had gone by, it felt longer, especially with everything that happened so far. Slipping on her slippers, she opened the door to find Alisha leaning against the wall, scanning the hallway as she waited for Mai. A ball of fire bobbed above her head to provide light and warmth, as the building didn't have any heating and could get quite cold with it snowing outside.

"Sorry for the wait, I'm done now."

"No problem. But we should probably get back as soon as possible. This place gives me the creeps." Mai nodded in agreement, falling into step next to Alisha as she studied the woman out of the corner of her eye. Her attention was drawn once again by the bobbing firelight and she cleared her throat.

"It seems quite cool to be able to control fire. Does it come naturally, or did you have trouble with it?" Alisha glanced at her, seeming to consider her before facing forward again. Mai thought for a moment that she wasn't going to answer her, but after a minute the woman's low voice spoke up.

"It comes naturally to me. Well, the fire I generate on my own is easy to control. Fire that I didn't create or start, meaning wild fire, is much more chaotic and, as a result, much more powerful. It's quite difficult to control wild fire and even I wouldn't try to control a large amount of it. However, by causing the friction between particles near me to rapidly speed up, I can create my own fire."

Mai grinned, opening her mouth to continue this line of questioning, when she felt ice travel up her back as her consciousness was pulled into darkness. The last thing she heard was Alisha calling her name before she was lost to the abyss.

GH

**Mai groaned as she opened her eyes to find herself, not in the corridor with Alisha, but rather in a patient's room. She looked down with trepidation, only to sigh in relief as she recognised her own hands and clothes, she could at least be grateful this wasn't a first person dream. Looking around her, she took in the white padded room. It was smaller than she imagined, with no windows and no door she could see. It gave off a neglected atmosphere, as if it didn't matter who lived here, which she guessed was true.**

**Taking a step forward, Mai looked down as she heard a crinkle and saw that the floor was covered in papers filled with childish drawings. Crouching down, she picked a few up and had to throw a hand over her mouth as she realised what they were depicting. Various torture scenes, looking all the more gruesome as it was a child's hand that drew it, flashed before her eyes as she flipped through the pages.**

**When Mai couldn't take it anymore, she placed them down, trying to avert her eyes from the pitiful stick figure that was screaming as red poured from its body. Standing, she walked to the wall, trying to see if there was a hidden door somewhere, but as she touched the firm material, she gasped at the slimy sensation and pulled her hand away.**

**It was coated in red and she felt the hair on her neck rising as the walls started to bleed, the thick red liquid starting to fill the room.**

_**You shouldn't be here… This is my room…** _

**Looking around for the voice's owner, Mai desperately tried to ignore the wet sensation by her feet as she hesitantly answered.**

" **I'm sorry, I didn't mean to trespass. My friends and I just want to help you. It's not safe or good for you to stay here all these years, you need to move on. You need to leave this plane of existence."**

_**No! You can't leave! I'll make sure you won't leave…** _

" **Why? What happens when we leave?" Mai felt a presence building in one corner of the room, and it seemed to hesitate at her question. She tried to quell the panic that was building, as the blood was now at her waist and rising rapidly. She could smell the metallic and salty scent of it, nausea pushing up in her.**

_**Come… I'll show you why…** _

**Mai gave one last gasp as the thick crimson liquid rushed up and swallowed her whole.**

GH

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, lots of dreams in this one. Hope that answers some questions to you, as this case isn't really much about the initial mystery, but rather what comes after. On another note, I know shock therapy didn't really pick up around the 1200 century, it was a bit later, but it wasn't totally absent. I explain it more later in the story, for those who are sticklers for such things.
> 
> I hope you guys enjoyed the chapter, even if it was filled more with blood than anything else. Please comment, I'm on my knees here!:)


	7. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Righto, here's the new chapter, which I hope you'll all enjoy:D I had so much fun writing this one, so I hope it doesn't turn out too bad. Theories are welcome and in fact, I might even reveal a small titbit if someone gives me a good theory, as some readers have already discovered.
> 
> I also just want to thank thatfangirl97 for commenting on I Am Still Here and I hope you find this sequel just as entertaining as the first one;D
> 
> And so, Enjoy!

**Chapter 6**

**Mai screamed and clawed her way up, trying to reach the surface and escape from suffocating liquid around her. The slimy sensation from the blood cleared for a brief moment, a moment where she could see Naru's worried face and his mouth moving urgently.**

" _ **Naru!"**_

**Her scream was cut off as she was pulled back down, her flash of consciousness leaving her as the spirit dragged her deeper into her dream. Finally, she couldn't hold her breath any longer and her last air bubbled up above her. Just when she thought she was done for, her feet met steady ground and she opened her eyes to see that she was standing in the middle of a lab, clean and with no evidence of blood anywhere. The sound of a door opening behind her had her turning around to see the same nurse as before, Mary, walk in with a small boy, no older than three or four, clinging to her hand. Mai took a deep breath, trying to calm herself down and adjust from the jarring sensation of changing events so quickly. Then she examined the boy further, knowing he was probably the spirit haunting the place.**

**The boy was pale, with dirty blond hair and the most magnificent green eyes Mai had ever seen; but his body was skinny and he looked malnourished. Vivid bruises covered his arms and legs and she could even see some peeking out from beneath his shirt's collar. His eyes were innocent, yet it seemed as if an old soul stared at her from behind them, even though she knew the boy wasn't looking at her.**

" **Ah, Mary, you've arrived with the patient. Well, strap him into the chair, we're continuing yesterday's shock therapy. It really is amazing what Mr Nairne developed and even better after it was adjusted for our purposes." Mai turned to see the thin doctor, the one called Bryan Crowther, gesturing towards a chair that had white restraints to strap a patient in, with an odd machine standing next to it. The machine had various copper wires coming from it and consisted of a glass cylinder mounted on glass insulators.**

**Nurse Mary settled the child on the chair, fastening his hands and feet, before pulling on a pair of thick gloves. Uncoiling a strand of the thick shiny wires, she wrapped it around the child's head and arms, with another around both of his legs. Dr Crowther stepped forward, checking that the wires were wound correctly, before he stepped back and handed Mary a clipboard.**

" **Right. June 11** **th** **1805, 15:33 p.m. Patient 20091799, receiving his second round of Electrostatic treatment. So far, no evident effects have been noted from administering this treatment previously. Previous treatments include Rotational therapy, isolation and chains. Doctor in charge of Patient 20091799 is Bryan Crowther and nurse on hand is Mary Dale. The time is now 15:34 p.m. and treatment will commence."**

**Mai wanted to hurl when she realised that if the date was 1805, that meant Daemon had to be six years old, which was about twice the age he looked physically. His malnourished appearance was evidently much worse than she thought. She watched with horror as the nurse began to turn the handle on the machine, winding it up and causing friction to be generated. She knew, from what Naru had told her, that this machine, used like this, was highly unusual in this time period.**

**Shock treatment had only begun in the 1900's, not the start of the 1800's they were in now, meaning that Crowther had radical ideas in his time. This machine was not even supposed to be able to generate enough electricity to harm a person, but evidently they had fiddled with it, for a minute after the nurse had begun winding it up, Mai swore she could see a spark travelling along the wire, and then the boy started whimpering.**

**His whimpers started low, more frightened than pained, but it quickly heightened, till the boy was screaming in pain and jerking against his restraints. After ten minutes, the doctor motioned for the nurse to stop, though it took a while for Daemon's screams to taper off into sobbing, his head hanging forward as tears and snot dripped from his face.**

" **Well, it really is a shame that this machine doesn't generate enough electricity to really shock adults, but it's enough for a child. Think of the medical advancements we could make! We could reset a person, rewrite their mind to our fashion! We could have helped his dear old crazy mother and then maybe he wouldn't have had the tragic fate of being tainted by her blood." Despite the man's words, Mai could see the malicious satisfaction in his eyes as he watched the boy, whose body was still wracking with sobs.**

" **Doctor, are you sure his mother couldn't benefit from this therapy? The boy would be much more pliable with his mother near him." Crowther's head snapped towards the nurse, an ugly scowl adorning his face.**

" **Be quiet you silly woman. The boy's mother is already dead! She died three years after his birth and we can only be grateful such an unbalanced individual isn't roaming our halls anymore. Besides, he is only a boy, he is not difficult to handle." Mai wasn't really listening to the doctor anymore; her attention had been drawn to Daemon when he had flinched as the doctor said that his mother was already dead.**

**Sad green eyes stared vacantly ahead and Mai felt more than saw the emotional turbulence raging in that thin body. Therefore she was not shocked like the doctor and nurse when the tiny child began screaming and thrashing, demanding they let him go in his limited vocabulary.**

" **NO! Nonononononono! Let go, LET GO! Wanna leave, don't like it! Go go gogogogogogo GO!"**

" **Be quiet you devil's spawn! I said, BE QUIET!" The thundering of the doctor's voice and the sharp smack to hit face evidently shocked the child, as he stopped screaming and instead hiccupped as he cried softly. The doctor crouched in front of the boy, trying to look compassionate, but only managing to look threatening.**

" **Listen up closely Daemon. Do you know why that is your name? It is because you are the child of a demon. And demon children are not welcomed in society. You CANNOT go outside, do you hear me? Outside is a harsh place, where little children like you are torn apart by monsters and normal people. Normal people do not like demon children, so you should never speak to them, look at them or touch them. If you do, you might infect them with your dirtiness and they will also turn into demons. The outside world is only for adults and sane people. Do you hear me? Do NOT go Outside!"**

**By this point, Mai was quivering with rage as tiny Daemon nodded his head, his eyes fearful and regretful. She had never so much wished she could hurt a person as she wanted to hurt that vile man right now. Even as the scene turned black and Mai felt her consciousness returning, she stewed in her anger. She closed her eyes as she felt the light of the waking world surround her.**

_**Don't go outside…** _

GH

"Mai?" Eyelashes fluttering, Mai slowly opened her chocolate eyes, seeing Naru leaning over her worriedly as his fingers stroked her hair absent-mindedly. She groaned, sitting up and leaning into Naru as she felt the exhaustion setting in. Dreaming non-stop, especially as it was her psychic dreams, meant her mind didn't get the rest it needed and she was feeling it now.

"What time is it?" she muttered, seeing as the room was too bright for it to simply have been a few hours since she fell unconscious.

"It's about noon. You slept for more than 11 hours. Mai, what happened?" Naru's voice was neutral again once he had ascertained that Mai wasn't in any immediate danger and he instantaneously reverted to his investigator persona.

"Ugh. Uhm, I think the spirit wanted to show me something. Firstly, I am 97% sure that the spirit we are dealing with is Daemon. Secondly, I know he has been here since before he was three, though I'm not sure how long before…?"

"It's been ascertained that he was born and raised in the asylum." Mai nodded, her fear confirmed by Naru's monotone words.

"Well, it appears that throughout his life, he was told that he's a demon child and that he shouldn't leave, that people like him aren't welcome outside. That doctor, Crowther, told him that only normal people could live outside, but Naru, I didn't see any evidence of him being sick or anything abnormal really. I… I don't even think he was psychic…"

Naru looked angry as he answered her unasked question, his own gut twisting as he thought about it. "I believe when he was born here, the doctors felt they had some sort of ownership over him. Add to that the fact that his mother was apparently insane, though her symptoms indicate she likely suffered from Schizophrenia, and without family, they just never told anyone the child survived and instead raised him themselves. There are no records for the boy himself, or if there are, they have been lost over time. After all, no one can protest any experimental treatments, which were synonymous with torture, done on a patient that doesn't exist…"

"That's terrible… They performed 'treatments' on him since he was young, treating him like a test subject, all in the name of  _curing_  him. It seemed he was brainwashed to believe that he couldn't and shouldn't leave this place. The only question is why is he keeping us here? And why hasn't he kept anyone here before, like Mr Bailey the caretaker?"

Naru adopted his thinking pose, his blue eyes dark as he thought. After a few minutes, Cian hesitantly spoke up.

"Are we still going to perform the exorcism today? Or will we postpone it till we have more information?"

"No, let's proceed as planned. The sooner we get this spirit to move on, the sooner we can all go home. Miss Malakar, Mr O'Brian, are you ready to start in an hour?" Both of them nodded and Mai stood to make her some tea, along with anyone else who might want some. It ended up being for her, Cian and Alisha, with Rhys requesting some coffee and Emily stubbornly ignoring Mai. She didn't even ask Naru, knowing that he would want tea, as she had seen his intention of asking right before she placed the steaming cup before him. Muttering thanks, Naru sipped at the beverage as she handed the others' theirs, before sitting next to Naru, soaking up his comforting presence after her traumatic experience.

Though Naru still brought her tea when she had a particularly bad dream, she had found that just being near him had a calming effect and so she preferred staying in his company after an upsetting dream. Relaxing back, she pulled out her ragged dream diary and finally wrote in her latest two dreams. She tried to remember as much detail as possible, so she could always review them later if needed and after half an hour of writing she was almost finished, as was everyone else with their own tasks.

Another half an hour later found all of them in lab 2, as Naru didn't want to leave Emily and Rhys unprotected at base. A camera and microphone stood in the corner, placed in such a way that it got most of the room in its range. Alisha was cloaked in her fire once again, but she stood back a bit as Cian stepped forward to try and communicate with the spirit.

Sitting down with his legs crossed in a meditating pose, Cian breathed deeply as he centred himself; and Mai marvelled at how still he was able to keep his body. His voice, though soft, seemed to carry around the room.

"We ask that the one who wishes to communicate with us come before us. I offer my body as a vessel for your message, so that you may communicate your wishes." Silence descended on them, but Cian didn't seem bothered and as Mai felt the temperature drop, she knew why. Emily's gasp drew her attention back to the man in front of her, only to see him jerk and straighten, looking cautiously around the room.

When his eyes alighted on them, she couldn't contain her own gasp, as she practically felt Daemon's aura staring at her from Cian's blue eyes, which flashed green for a moment before reverting to Cian's original azure. The possessed man stood up carefully, as if uncertain how to use his limbs and Mai could think that it would be disorientating to suddenly reside in a body so different from your own body in the past.

"Hello, Daemon I presume? My name is Oliver Davis and I'm a paranormal investigator. Do you know what that means?" Cian's head shook curtly, his expression suspicious, yet not threatening. Mai decided to speak up, as she knew Naru, while he cared, was not always the most sensitive in the way he said things.

"It means that we help spirits who are trapped to move on, to leave this plane of existence for the one that comes after this. Just like we want to help you. You belong in a much better place Daemon.

"Demons can't live anywhere but here. The Outside is for adults and normal people. We would get hurt and die if we went outside. It is safer inside."

"You're already dead Daemon. Things outside cannot hurt you any longer." Mai cursed Naru's tactlessness, as the boy in a man's body flinched back, his expression shutting down faster than she could try and rescue the situation.

"Demon children cannot go outside. Even Mary said so and Mary doesn't lie. Even you call me a demon." Mai felt her heart go out to the little boy, who had never known anything beyond this small building, who didn't know the magnificence of the world outside, the sight and smell of grass or the scent of the ocean. He had never felt a mother's love or a father's protective embrace, nor the companionship of friends. He had died just knowing these four walls and fearing what was outside it so much that his spirit hid away in this building all these years. Being cursed with a name meaning demon just justified his claims in his eyes and them calling him it didn't help.

"The outside world isn't that horrifying. There are a lot of beautiful things, exciting sights and exotic smells. Lots of different textures form the outside world and it is filled with people, not all of them necessarily normal. The Outside world is far larger than you could ever imagine and you deserve to know the wonders it holds. You don't have to be afraid."

Naru spoke up after Mai's heartfelt speech, his voice unexpectedly tender. "If you choose to pass on, no one will ever be able to hurt you. You will be safe and warm and, most of all, happy." Mai could feel the boy's spirit hesitating, his heart torn in one direction and his mind in another. She smiled at his uncertain expression, her own face alight with warmth and love and she could feel his walls thawing as he soaked up her attention. Just as she felt his heart winning over his mind, over what he had been told for years, an annoying high voice spoke up.

"Yeah, I mean, an old boy like you shouldn't be afraid of what lies outside these four pathetic walls right? Just act like the big boy you are and got to heaven or hell or wherever it is spirits go, it  _has_  to better than being inside this rundown building right? I mean, you can't be dumb enough to believe all those lies Mary told you, right Daemon?"

Mai felt all the blood leave her face at Emily's harshly spoken words and her mind raged at the bloody stupid, idiotic, foolish, rash, monumentally insensitive and brainless twit for her careless words. She could practically feel the temperature drop below freezing as Emily's words, so close to the words the doctor always said to Daemon, caused the fragile boy to snap.

An unearthly screeching sound filled the room, overlapped by the boy's own screaming voice. Like in her dreams, the walls began to bleed as the room started filling with blood. Hearing a high-pitched scream closer to her, Mai jerked around to see Emily clawing at her arms, where dozens upon dozens of leeches were steadily moving upwards. She could see Emily's pale blue sweater ripple as the movement indicated more of the vile creatures on her front and back.

Rhys was strapped to a chair that appeared out of nowhere, spinning around in tight, dizzying circles as he threw up over himself, his skin pale and clammy. Naru was dodging wires that seemed to want to wrap around him, using small amounts of PK to deflect them if they came too close. Alisha was seemingly trying to burn the leeches off of Emily, though she was gaining small scratches as she did so.

An icy feeling on her stomach had Mai freezing in her desperate bid to help her teammates and maybe use Bou-san's chant to drive the horrors away. Looking down slowly, the cinnamon-haired woman saw the form of a pale boy standing in front of her, his hands rubbing her shirt as he whispered,  _ **Demon children do not go outside. Only adults and normal people do.**_

Jerking back, she readied herself for the Nine Cuts, even though she didn't actually want to hurt Daemon, but another voice ringing through her mind halted her.

_Wha- what's going on… is this… IS THIS_ _**BLOOD** _ _? O my gosh,_ _**o my gosh** _ _, what- No, nononononononononononono_ _**NO** _ _! Blood, it's_ _**blood** _ _\- blo-_

Mai spun around, forgetting about the boy, as she took in Cian's motionless form, his horror-filled eyes riveted to his body, which was coated in red from head to toe from when he had collapsed when Daemon's spirit left him. His breathing was fast as his body quivered and Mai remembered something she had read in his file. He suffered from hemophobia, meaning he had an extreme fear of blood. Now that she thought about it, he had also seemed a bit freaked out last night when her arm had bled and had looked quite sick when she mentioned the walls bleeding in her one dream in the passing.

She couldn't believe she had forgotten such a vital piece of information. Judging by the pained grimaces on her other teammates' faces, she guessed they could all hear Cian's ongoing panic attack.

_Get it away, GET IT AWAY, NO, please, Nathaniel, NATHANIEL! Blood, too much blo-_

Without further thought, Mai waded through the dense liquid, determined to reach Cian, who was the farthest away from her. The others were too preoccupied with their own problems and the pain of having Cian's subconscious voice screaming in their mind was likely causing them a headache. Mai could feel her own headache coming on, but it wasn't as bad as Naru's, if she judged by his expression and the hand on his head as he continued to dodge life wires.

_Nate, please, please, help me, get it away! Blood, bloodbloodbloodbloodblood…!_

Mai knew she had to reach Cian quickly. If he fainted now… Worst case scenario, he would drown. His sweating and trembling form finally in front of her, Mai grabbed his hands, ignoring the clammy feeling as she stared into his fear-glazed eyes. She could hear Alisha's chant in the background as a ring of fire danced around the other members of her team.

She wasn't even aware of the attacks against her teammates stopping and the blood-level receding slowly, she was just focused on Cian.

"Cian, listen to me. Look at me, only me. Cian!" Blue orbs snapped up to meet her chocolate ones at her sharp tone and she stepped closer, making sure that he could only focus on her face.

"It's ok Cian, it's going to be alright. I need you to breathe with me ok. In… and out… In… and out…" Mai knew that the best way to ensure someone didn't faint was for them to tense their muscles, to knot them, but at this point she really felt it'll be better for Cian to welcome the secure oblivion.

_Mai… where's Nate? Mai, there's blood_ _**everywhere** _ _…_

"Shhhhh, it's fine, the blood is going to go away. Nate isn't here right now, so I need you to relax. First relax your shoulders. You can feel the muscles loosening as they slump and your body feels heavy… That's it, it's ok to faint Cian, I've got you…"

_Mai… Thanks…_

With that, Cian's body fell limply into her arms and Mai grunted in her effort to hold up his slender body. The blood was now gone and the room looked as if nothing had happened, but the crimson liquid still coated their clothes; so she sunk gently onto her knees, lying Cian down, as she waited for one of the guys to come help her.

It didn't take long for Naru to arrive by her side, his appearance macabre as he was positively coated in crimson and black, but Mai was certain they all looked the same. Sighing, she smiled tiredly at him and just wished she was back in base.

"He fainted. We need to get him out of these clothes and washed off before he wakes up, otherwise it will be the same situation all over again." Naru nodded briskly, calling Rhys over so that they could carry Cian to the bathroom to wash him off. Mai stood and rolled her shoulder; trying to get rid of the tension she could feel lining her body and the building, the charged atmosphere building on the headache she could feel budding behind her eyes. Nodding to Alisha, she strode determinedly towards the base, confident the other two women would follow her, her mind boiling.

She was going to have some words with Emily, once and for all.

GH

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TADAAAA! First failed exorcism, what did you guys make of it? I hope the bleeding walls and the attacks aren't too cliché, but I felt they fit with Daemon. Also, hope this makes it clear that Daemon really was just a normal boy, who was unlucky enough to be born in the wrong place, at the wrong time, to the wrong mother (in these specific circumstances). I feel that makes what happened to him in a way worse and much more realistic than if he had psychic powers they tried to 'treat' out of him (not that I'm condoning any torturing of psychics!).
> 
> Any ways, I hope to hear what you think and don't lynch Emily too soon, I promise being an annoying twit isn't her only role in the story. Please comment lovelies!


	8. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OK, you guys are getting a longer chapter than usual, around 5000 words:) I hope you enjoy it, as a lot happens in this chapter. Thanks for the kudos and to blondiee1396 for commenting, it really means a lot:)
> 
> And so, Enjoy!

**Chapter 7**

" _What. Was. That?!"_

Mai's voice sounded twisted to her own ears as she practically hissed at Emily. After their disastrous attempt at convincing Daemon to move on, the women had returned to the base while the men had cleaned Cian, ensuring that no trace of blood remained on him or them. The women had wiped their skin and hair with a few wet cloths and bottled water, as well as changed clothes, but it was no substitute for a real shower, which would have to come later.

The base had then descended into an icy silence as they waited for the men to return, the tension so thick you could cut it with a knife. Mai had followed the men on the monitors, ensuring they were ok, but as soon as they had returned and transferred a now awake, but very much shaken Cian to the couch, Mai had rounded on the platinum blonde twit.

"Why on earth would you say that to a possible volatile spirit? A spirit who showed he could hurt someone? And then, to top it all off, you continue on to call him by a name he had  _just_   _said_  is proof of him being a demon. Do you not have the two brain cells to rub together?  _Subete no bakagemashita_ … What happened in your head to justify your words?! Have you learned nothing in that fancy university you brainless twit? It's one thing to hate me and mock me, but to do that to a spirit… Gah, you  _orokana on'na!_ "

Emily was staring at the ranting Mai wide-eyed, her lower lip trembling suspiciously.

"Oh no, don't give me that look, you brought this on yourself!"

"I just wanted to… I thought-"

"No, that's the thing, you didn't think! You might have just cost us that little boy's trust and if he becomes a gaki or worse because of you, I'll personally lynch you!"

" **Mai, calm down."** Mai spun around at her husband's monotone voice, her anger fuelling her.

" **Oliver, that woman-"**

" **I know, now** _ **Calm. Down.**_ **I will take care of this. Go make me some tea in the meantime."**

Mai huffed and stormed away, still muttering in Japanese beneath her breath as she slammed cups down and rattled teapots. She ignored Naru's icy voice in the background, focusing solely on her turbulent emotions and the water boiling.

She felt her thoughts take a heaver turn, as she ran over what had just happened. There was a chance that Daemon would now never be able to trust them, and then he would be forever chained here by the shackles of his own mind, never moving on, never getting the peace he deserved. As her thoughts became more depressing, Mai felt like crying for the small boy and her movements slowed down as she stared off into space.

Her eyes burned, but she held the unwelcome tears back, she would not let that woman see her actions caused Mai such pain. If only she had been faster, had anticipated what the baka would say…

No wait, why should she feel guilty? In the first place, this was that bloody harpy's entire fault. After attending Cambridge, she should have known that she should be careful with her words. Daemon had been on the verge of listening to them when she just had to butt in. And then Naru had the gall to tell  _her_  to calm down! Why, she ought to…!

Mai was halfway turned around, ready to deliver blistering words, when her mind took another turn.

Hmmm, wait, but this is Naru she's thinking off. He probably tearing Emily a new one while she's here lost in her own thoughts. Plus, Naru's solved worse cases and if Daemon had any chance of moving on, Naru would ensure it happened.

Feeling better, Mai turned around with a smile, ignoring the surprised looks she got for her sudden change of mood and gave Naru his tea, placing the tray with extra cups on the small coffee table for the other's to help them to. If she snubbed Emily a bit by placing the tray further away from her, who would blame her?

GH

"Do you realise the magnitude of your actions Miss Taylor? Do you comprehend the effects this could have on the case?" Naru ignored any attempt the idiotic girl in front of him made at defending herself, continuing doggedly with Mai's angry actions playing as background noise; as he simultaneously tried to ignore his raging headache and tired muscles.

"Your careless words singlehandedly provoked the most violent incident we've had up to date. Your professors all speak highly of your grades, but evidently, book smarts isn't everything. Let me explain your position to you Miss Taylor. You are an intern, here to learn. From now on, you are not to speak during exorcisms or when any contact with the spirit is established. You are not to act on your own without supervision. You are to keep all irrelevant thoughts to yourself and not question those with more experience in the field that you have in your pinkie. If not for the fact that we are locked in this building, I would have dismissed your from this case immediately Miss Taylor. Is that clear?"

Emily nodded, her face bone white and her grey-blue eyes watering. "Good. You are dismissed. Make sure to stay out of the investigators' way for the duration of the case."

Naru pinched the bridge of his nose, sighing as he glanced towards Mai. He could see her shoulders were slumped and her movements heavy, but as he watched, her muscles pulled tight and he winced imperceptibly as a teacup was set down with an almost deafening crack and her body half turned. He relaxed, however, as he saw the tension leaving his wife's shoulders as she paused and as her movements became more bouncy. The smile on her face only confirmed his thoughts and the corner of his lips tilted up as she sat down next to him, handing him his tea.

"Have you calmed down?" Blushing a bit, Mai nodded at Naru's question, probably sheepish at how easy it was for him to read her.

Right then. That's good. Now we need to de-" Naru felt his mind going fuzzy, the pain he had been holding back this entire time causing his thoughts to darken. His muscles protested against movement and he could practically feel his heartbeat slowing. Damn, he hadn't thought that he had used that much PK. Seeing only grey spots in front of his face, like a TV with bad reception, Naru slowly fell into darkness.

GH

"Naru!" Mai watched with horror as Naru slowly tilted over, his teacup slipping from his fingers and crashing to the ground as she caught Naru's upper body. Feeling his face was cold and clammy, Mai paled, the image of Naru using his PK flashing through her mind. She was sure he hadn't used so much PK that he was in immediate danger of dying, but then, isolated as they were, it could still happen.

"Rhys, fetch me some cold water and a cloth, quickly!" Mai yelled, quickly unbuttoning Naru's shirt with experienced yet trembling fingers. "Alisha, Cian, I'm sorry to ask you this, but see if you can get out. Hopefully, Daemon is still shaken from our encounter just now and you can open a route of escape. Hurry!"

Mai ignored the flurry of activity around her as she pressed her fingers against Naru's wrist, measuring his heart rate. She grimaced as she counted about 50 beats per minutes, knowing that with Naru's average fitness, he never fell beneath 58 beats per minute, even when he was sleeping deeply. She had to get his heartbeat up, but didn't know how to do it without miraculously having a pacemaker or going to the hospital.

As soon as this case was over, she was going to force him to the hospital, get a pacemaker and learn how to use it, just in case something like this ever happened again. She looked up as Rhys returned, taking the wet cloth he handed over and wiping Naru down. She felt so useless, with no idea how to help him. Usually, Lin was with them exactly for this type of situation, though it hadn't really happened often over the years.

Counting his heart rate again, she saw that it had dropped to 48 beats per minute and panic started to set in. As soon as Naru reached between 30 and 40 beats per minute, it would trigger a heart failure and they had no way of treating that here.

" **Dammit Naru, come on you idiot scientist! Don't do this now!"**  Mai piled blanket upon blanket upon Naru, trying to warm him up and thus increase his heartrate, but while it didn't get any worse, it also didn't get better. Rhys was dabbing the sweat from Naru's brow, careful not to get in the way of Mai's frantic actions.

"M-mrs Davis… Wh-what's happening to Dr. Davis?" Mai didn't even spare Emily a glance as she continued to rub Naru's body, trying to stimulate his blood flow; though she did answer.

"He's experiencing Bradycardia, meaning a slow heart rate. When Naru overuses his PK, it causes his body to shut down, because of the strain his immense PK places on it. In the first place, his PK is cold in nature, so it lowers his body temperature. If he uses it gradually like he did now, he might not even notice it before it's too late. His heart starts slowing down to conserve energy, but because it had just expended a lot of energy via his PK use, the heart doesn't realise when to stop slowing down.

"You can basically say his PK and his body is incompatible." Mai paused, her eyes drifting up to look at Emily, remembering the girl had some healing energy. Hope filled her as she cautiously asked, "Do you think, with your energy healing, that you could raise his heart rate a bit? Just a few beats would be fine I think."

However, Emily shook her head whilst biting her lip. "I-I don't have that much control over it. The power I put into my healing doesn't have a power switch, or at least, I can't master it yet. I'm liable to pour everything I have into it and that could make his heartrate spike so much that it sends him into cardiac arrest!" Mai nodded, her shoulders slumping as she looked down at her pale husband. He was breathing shallowly, his breaths almost short gasps and Mai felt tears gathering in the corners of her eyes.

"Mai, it's no use! As soon as we try to leave, Daemon cuts us off! We also can't connect a call to outside. We're still stuck!" Mai nodded absent-mindedly, having not really expected any other result than that Cian told her. She could hear Alisha speaking to Emily, her tone harsh and Emily's anxious voice answering in denial, but she paid it no mind. Her hand was cupping Naru's cheek, her forehead pressed against his and she closed her eyes as a single tear slipped out. His face was clammy, his breath shallow and she could practically feel him slip away.

Time seemed to slow down, noise faded away and it was just her and Naru, wrapped in their own cocoon. Her fingers were carding softly through the fine silk strands of his dark hair and his body was so still she panicked for a second. The worst thing was that she knew this wouldn't be so dangerous if they weren't trapped, that Lin could probably have gotten Naru's heartbeat up. Another tear slipped from her clenched eyes.

A strange fluttering in her stomach had her frowning, her mouth pulling as she glanced down in confusion to see nothing. It came again and Mai gasped lightly as she could feel a slow power uncoiling, travelling leisurely from her body to Naru's and settling over his form. After a few seconds, it dissipated and she was astonished to feeling Naru taking deep, relaxed breath against her face. His colour was returning and his face became relaxed. Her hand flashing down, she counted his heartbeat, exhaling heavily when she counted 60 beats and rising.

He was going to be alright.

GH

"Mai. Mai, you need to eat something." Slowly blinking, Mai sat up from where she had been slumped against the couch, her head pillowed on Naru's stomach. Alisha's face swam in front of her and it took her a few seconds to realise a can of sweetcorn was held out to her. Sighing, as she didn't feel hungry, she reached out and took the canned food, forcing the corn down her throat as Alisha sat back.

"Does this happen often?" The cinnamon haired woman looked up tiredly at Alisha's question and she could see the rest of the team also paying attention from where they were spread around her. She shook her head, sighing.

"No, it doesn't. Naru knows not to use his PK, as it can kill him, but sometimes his hand is forced. Luckily, it doesn't happen all too often, as Lin is usually with us to protect him. But it does frustrate him."

Alisha nodded, her expression thoughtful and Rhys spoke up. "Well, I'm glad we managed to get his heartbeat up. For a moment there…" Mai felt a shiver travel down her spine, as she thought once again of how close she was to losing her husband and love. She didn't share her worries about the strange energy that had saved Naru, as she wasn't sure what to think about it.

Mai tried to think about something else and she remembered someone else who had a rough time during the exorcism. "Cian, are you alright?"

The blue-eyed man blushed as he realised everyone's attention was on him. He nodded, his fringe covering his eyes as he looked down. "Hey Cian, don't lower your head. You did nothing wrong and a phobia isn't something one can easily control. We're all fine and now we know about the ghost's tendency to use blood, so we can help you."

Cian nodded and Mai felt a rush of warmth for Alisha and her kind words. She was about to speak up when Rhys butted in first.

"Who's Nathaniel?" Cian blushed again, though Mai could see it wasn't out of mortification this time.

"He's my boyfriend. We've been together for almost six years now. He usually helps me when there is bl-blood involved." Mai frowned as she saw Rhys twitch just a bit at the mention of boyfriend, his body held tightly and she hoped Cian didn't notice. If she looked at his grim smile, however, she was sure he had noticed the other man's brief flinch. Before something else they all would regret could happen, a timid voice interjected.

"Um, why are you afraid of blood?" Emily flinched at the glare Mai and Alisha sent her and backtracked quickly, holding her hands up in front of her face as she stuttered, "I mean, I'm sorry, you don't have to answer if you don't want to!"

Mai sighed, her mind despairing at Emily. It was obvious the woman was trying to be more sensitive, but it's hard to suddenly be something you're not. Luckily, it seemed Cian didn't take offense at her question.

"Well, it comes from my childhood. You see, I'm an orphan, but I never stayed in an orphanage. I lived on the streets and it was a difficult life. My fear of blood didn't come from an actual experience with blood, but rather when I… when I…"

Mai shifted, pulling Cian to sit down beside her and she placed her arm around his shoulders. She could feel his body shuddering and she was about to say he didn't have to go further, when he took a deep breath and continued. "I had an encounter with a serial killer. I told you I could sense people's minds, but what I didn't clarify is that their minds are like their aura. It reflects who they are. I-I have  _never_ … met someone whose mind was as vile as that man's was. It was like a pool of blood, dripping and smearing my own mind, painting it crimson… If it wasn't for Nathaniel, I would have been killed that night. I was fifteen and Nathaniel eighteen and he had rescued me from the murderer. He then helped me recover; taking me under his wing and making sure I finished school. When I turned eighteen, we started going out and we've been together ever since."

Mai could sense that Cian left out some details of his encounter with the serial killer, but she had no wish to ask, as it was personal and she knew the experience was traumatic for Cian. Being chased through the streets, your mind being about raped by the vileness of another mind… her experience with Urado didn't even come close.

"When I was six, my dad left me in the room with a possessed woman." Alisha's voice had Mai turning to face her, though she didn't stop stroking Cian's back. "He told me it was high time I showed some psychic ability, as our family was always strong in that regard. The woman was loosely bound and as soon as my dad locked the door, she had broken free. I was banging on the door, begging to be let out, but he just said that I would stay in there till I showed some ability. My dad had always been a hard man, cruel even in his mission to be the best and it showed in that moment.

"The entire time I was being flung about by that possessed woman, getting closer to death, I hated him. I could feel a heat building up in my chest as my rage and hate grew. Finally, I couldn't take it anymore and my body burst into flames. Instead of burning me, it cradled me as it burned the building down around me, along with the possessed woman and my father. From then on, I decided to only trust my own ability and not people around me. My… harsh personality is from that experience. My mother, my siblings and I moved and I was trained by another psychic in my powers, till I came to England to enrol in Cambridge."

Mai smiled at Alisha, appreciating the courage and kindness she showed by telling of her experience and letting Cian know he wasn't alone. The rest of the night was spent talking, Rhys about his family and how his ability to teleport objects had led him to Cambridge and Mai told them about her own circumstances and how she came to meet Naru. Emily even hesitantly told them of being an only child, spoiled by her parents, but how they had disapproved of her wanting to study parapsychology after reading one of Oliver Davies' books; how her mother had wanted her to become a renowned doctor.

Mai appreciated the conversation, as it took her mind off her husband sleeping quietly on the couch behind her, his limp hand clutched in hers. She smiled, glad to be surrounded by people who cared in their own way.

GH

"Mai…" The brown-eyed woman flew up as she heard Naru's soft voice. She looked around frantically when she couldn't see him on the couch, her mind starting to freak out, when she heard an exasperated sigh. Turning, she saw with some relief that Naru was standing by the monitors. She must have fallen asleep waiting for him to wake up and as she glanced about, she realised she wasn't the only one, as the rest of the team was also sleeping in various positions.

"Hey." She whispered as she walked closer.

"Hey…" Silence descended as Naru watched her, waiting for her to speak and after a moment, she did. "Naru, this can't happen again. This time it wasn't so bad, but your PK could kill you. If we're on a case where we have no access to any medical help, you could die. I don't want you to leave me behind." Without a word, Naru pulled her closer, his strong arms surrounding her and she snuggled into his warmth, accepting the comfort he gave.

"Forgive me for scaring you. But Mai, there will be times that I have to use my PK. Of course, I don't want to leave you and I won't use it recklessly, but some situations cannot be overcome without it. And I will always use all means at my disposal to protect you, and if that means using PK, then I'll use it." Tightening her arms around him, she tried to block out her love's words, no matter how true they might be. The burden of Naru's PK had always hung over them, but this time it just reminded her how dangerous it was for her husband. Sighing, she leaned up and kissed him slowly, reassuring herself he was there, holding her and well. His lips on hers were filled with the same intense relief and she smiled softly as they parted.

"Mai, how did you get my heart rate up? I don't feel any of the lingering effects I normally feel afterwards." Mai frowned, pulling back.

"I'm not sure actually. I was just holding you when I felt this flow of energy leaving me and surrounding you. After it disappeared, your heart rate went back to normal." Fine black eyebrows pulled together as Naru frowned and Mai knew his mind was running over several possibilities.

"That should not be possible. You've shown no inclination towards healing or receptive abilities, in tests or naturally. Unless… it's a new development. It does seem like your abilities mainly manifest when you need them, so it could be that you subconsciously wanted the ability to manipulate my heartbeat and so developed the ability. So far, all your abilities manifested after you met me and they manifested when you most needed them to survive or understand something. This could be another example of it." Mai nodded, her face showing the dubious thoughts running through her head.

There were so many holes in that theory, but it was better than having nothing.

"If you say so." Naru nodded as he turned towards the monitors. Wandering away, her mind still pondering Naru's latest theory, she mechanically began making some tea, her eyes glazed over in thought. Finishing, she handed Naru his cup and got an almost smile in return, before she went to lie down on the couch. She fell asleep as she was still immersed in her thoughts and never felt the blanket Naru draped over her.

That morning, Mai woke up sluggishly and hungry. Groaning as her stomach growled, she immediately shuffled towards the food bag, ignoring the amused glances the various other occupants threw her. Digging around like a dog sniffing for a bone it buried, she extracted a can of beans, popping the lid and eating out of the can with a spoon. She polished the first can off within ten minutes, before digging around again. Grabbing two packets of twinkies, she ate those as well, licking her lips to make sure she got all of the sweet filling and crumbs off her face.

Humming, her knee bounced as she eyed the bag, wondering if she should have some of the canned pasta they bought, but Naru's throat clearing behind her made her freeze. "Do you plan on eating all of our food supplies?"

"Uhhh…" Wide-eyed, Mai grinned sheepishly up at her husband, her eyes flicking guiltily away. Muttering a quiet sorry, she trudged after Naru as he threw one last imperious look at her. Standing by the monitors, she listened as Naru listed the previous night's activity.

"It seemed out spirit was not happy with our actions yesterday. Last night there were various knocking noises recorded in the right wing, along with Lab 2 being completely turned over. Also, it appears that a permanent hallucination trigger now covers the main hallway. On all the instances one of you went outside and tried to reach the main hallway, you were caught in a hallucination. We still have three days, including today, before Martin takes drastic measures, so let's make sure we get this solved before then. Mai, do you still have those charms Matsuzaki-san gave you?"

Nodding, Mai went to fetch them at Naru's behest, giving one to each team member and placing one at each corner of the room and on the door. Naru continued to bark orders, planning another exorcism, but this time with Alisha as the main participant, since jourei failed and it was unlikely they would succeed in that area now. To prevent another… mishap… Naru had Emily stay at the base, with Mai watching over her as he knew Mai's anger over the jorei would enable her to control the intern. Cian would also stay behind, in case Daemon used blood as an attack again and they didn't want Cian to be incapacitated.

Watching the screen, Mai saw the remaining men and Alisha enter the hallway and blindfold themselves. She picked up the walkie-talkie, pressing the button so that Naru could hear her. "Ok, the door to the hallway is open, so take five steps forwards, then turn right. Walk till I say stop." Mai watched their progress down the hallway. They had capitalized upon the team's earlier discovery that Daemon could only influence your senses, not control your actual body. So even if you believe there's a wall in front of you, as long as you ignore your instincts, you would be able to walk through it.

"Right, stop. Turn to your right. Walk forward two steps and then the gate knob is at about waist-length. Good, keep walking ten paces and you're entirely in the right corridor." Naru nodded and he evidently said something, for Alisha began her chant, none of them taking off their blindfolds yet.

"Om Hleem Bagalaamukhi Sarva Dushtanam Vaacham Mukham Padam; Stambhaya Jivhaam Kilaya Buddhim Vinashaya Hleem Om Phat Swaha II…" Narrowing her eyes, Mai scanned the hallway, searching for Daemon, since she had to be Naru's eyes until he appeared. A flicker caught her attention at the corner of the screen, and looking down, she saw him.

Standing at the end of the corridor, Daemon didn't look like the fifteen year old she knew he was when he died, but rather as the six year old he was in her second dream. He was staring silently at the chanting woman from beneath his matted fringe, his clothes hanging raggedly from his rail-thin body.

"Naru's he's th-" Mai stuttered as the boy flickered, like a bad horror movie and reappeared halfway down the corridor, still quietly watching the exorcist team. He was steadily moving closer. Opening her mouth to hurriedly yell out a warning, she paused as it seemed Naru had caught the gist of her previous message, as all of them had taken off their blindfolds. Alisha's chant smoothly slid into a different one, one Mai knew was focused on banishing evil entities.

"Aum Rakte Dhanu Rakte Kaand Rakte

Haalijaamaamaaro Amukaar Amuk

Aamukataae Maro Tridash Dev-Gan Rudra…"

Mai watched in awe as the words rolled of the Hindu woman's tongue, her hands coming up as if she was notching an arrow on a bow. Actually, that was exactly what she was doing. A giant bow made out of intense crimson flames appeared in her hand as her eyes pinned the boy, who hesitated beneath her gaze. Mai's gut clenched as a fiery blue arrow materialized, pointed straight at Daemon's heart. The small boy now looked terrified, but either no one else saw, or no one else cared. Mai felt as if she was about to throw up, but she had to keep watching. She wasn't even aware that she was holding her breath, nor of the worried glances Cian sent her.

"… _Sakshi Amukaar Maro Deden Rakhi Arjun_

_Krishna Bhavaaneer Aagya!"_

The arrow was let loose and Mai inhaled sharply as it cut through the air at a blinding speed, disregarding the efforts the small child made to escape it. With her heart in her throat, Mai saw the arrow pierce the Daemon's small body, knocking him back as the flames licked at his body, a shrill scream being cut off abruptly.

"Begone Evil…" The spirit's form crumbled down, those waif-like arms clutching his middle as he sobbed. As Mai watched, the boy grew still and Alisha lowered her bow, opening her hand to let the flames dissipate. A moment of silence passed…

And then the child spirit looked up.

A confused anger was displayed in Daemon's big green eyes, ghostly tears still glistening on his cheeks. She watched in disbelief as he stood straight, bearing no sign of the arrow that had pierced him before. She could clearly see Alisha's disbelieving face before the boy asked one question in an innocent voice.

"Am I evil? Because I'm a demon?"

Mai felt as if a hammer was slammed into her midriff as Daemon disappeared, her eyes rolling back into her head as anger and sorrow flowed into her in equal measures. Daemon's emotions, for that's what these foreign sensations were, overwhelmed her completely and Mai collapsed onto her knees, clutching Cian who, with a cry, had hurried to her side. Emily was talking hysterically over the walkie-talkie, probably informing Naru of what happened to Mai, but she couldn't care less as nausea welled up in her.

Small hands on her face drew her out of her dizzy spell, to see Emily frantically running her lightly glowing hands down Mai's body, her brow furrowed and her eyes wild, but focused. When she reached Mai's midriff, she paused, her expression becoming puzzled, before it turned disbelieving. She swallowed as she lifted her hands away, staring into Mai's chocolate orbs with her grey ones. She wetted her lips in agitation and the 23 year old woman felt unease and a sense of foreboding filled her.

"What? What's wrong?" Those grey eyes flickered away in nervousness, but at Mai's sharp "Emily," they turned back. Swallowing, Mai heard two words which hit her harder than any foreign emotions.

"You're pregnant."

GH

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TADAAAA! Honestly, it seemed a lot of you expected this, but it's going to be way more complicated than you imagine. With this chapter finished, there's only three left, so you guys are getting close.
> 
> Thanks for reading and please comment, I'm really wondering how you guys are liking this story!


	9. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Right, this chapter is seriously just tension-building, so be prepared. Everything I wrote in this chapter abut Mai's pregnancy is actual fact, feel free to look it up, it's quite fascinating. Also, don't be too hard on Naru.
> 
> Thanks to all my other anonymous great readers for giving this story a chance:D
> 
> As always, ENJOY!

**Chapter 8**

"Wh-what? How is that possible?! Scan again, I can't be pregnant! I had my period this month!" Mai was breathing heavily as Emily shakily ran her hands down Mai's waist, resting them above her flattish stomach. Sure, Mai had gained a small bit of weight, but it was nothing too much. She had gained weight like this many times before and then lost it again. In fact, she usually gained weight when she visited Naru's parents, as the English food was a lot heavier than the Japanese food she was used to. She hadn't thought anything of it…

"I-I'm sure. In fact, I can clearly feel the fe-fetus… it's very well-formed, I would say you're at about 21 weeks pregnant, almost five months."

"Five MONTHS!? How is that even possible! Shouldn't I have gained weight, like, a lot of weight by now? What about the morning sickness or my period? I've had my period for the past five months!"

Cian's eyes were just as big as Mai's, both of them staring in disbelieve at Emily, who fidgeted nervously. Finally, she squared her shoulders and spoke up after taking a deep breath. "No, I'm not joking. My professors had me help out at a clinic on a weekly basis so that I could get some experience with my healing while being supervised and I've encountered a lot of pregnant woman in various stages there. I'm telling you Mrs Davis, you're about five months along."

" _What. "_

The blood drained from Mai's face at Naru's hissed voice, her hair standing on end as she turned to see Naru, his face stony, framed in the doorway. His hair looked ruffled as if he ran the entire way to base, with Alisha and Rhys behind him, their faces shocked. "Everyone except Mai and Miss Taylor, _out_!"

Mai flinched at Naru's harsh tone, looking pleadingly at Cian as he stood up. He looked at her with apologetic eyes as he left the room, closing the door behind him. Naru went to sit down on the couch, the bridge of his nose pinched between his fingers and Mai cautiously sat down across from him, Emily standing behind her. She could hear the woman shifting her weight around as they waited for Naru to speak.

" _ **Explain."**_

Mai swallowed nervously, glancing up at Naru before looking back down to her hands in her lap. **"Uhm, I do-don't really know how to. Emily says that I'm five months pregnant, but I didn't kn-"**

" **Mai, how can you not know?! Five months of pregnancy, and you didn't think to tell me you missed your cycle? Did you think it's fine to come on a dangerous case whilst pregnant and more so, not even have the decency to tell me? What am I supposed to think Mai, when my wife won't even te-"** Mai felt her own temper flare, as Naru wasn't listening to her. As the idiot scientist he was, he had formed a theory about what happened and now didn't want to hear anything contrary to that. She knew he was in shock and if she could just get him to calm down, then he would be able to listen to her.

" **NARU! YOU IDIOTIC SCIENTIST, LISTEN TO ME! I** _ **DIDN'T**_ **KNOW! I had my period the last five months! That's just why I was telling Emily that she had to be mistaken!"** Naru snapped his mouth shut as they both glared at each other, Naru with his arms folded and Mai standing in front if the couch, her fists clenched. She could tell Naru calmed down a bit as he started speaking in English again, enabling Emily to understand them.

"Mai, it is physically impossible to have your menstrual cycle whilst pregnant. Unless you're lying, then Emily diagnosed you wrong."

"I'm not wrong and Mrs Davis didn't have her period." Snapping around, Mai glared at the blonde twit. She was tired of being attacked about something that wasn't just her fault and so she bit out angrily, "Are you calling me a liar? I'm telling you, you idiotic twit, I had m-"

"No wait, that's not what I meant. Please, just listen, I can explain this!" Mai snapped her mouth shut, sitting back down and sulking. Emily sat down next to her cautiously, as if afraid of inciting her wrath and with the mood Mai was in, she might just lash out.

"First, how did you experience your period the last few months? Was it heavy flow or light?"

Mai rolled her eyes, crossing her arms defensively as she glared at no one. "Ugh, I can't remember! Light I guess, it changed sometimes."

"Right. Ok, there was this one teenager who came to the clinic, because she had stomach cramps. Turns out she was pregnant and didn't know it. When I asked the nurse how it was possible, she told me this. Firstly, not all women experience pregnancies the same and not all their pregnancies are the same. Some women, like Mai I suspect, barely have any morning sickness, cravings, cramps, nosebleeds or anything like that. Secondly, there are some women who barely gain any weight. I knew a woman who stayed as flat as a board until the end of her sixth month, when she suddenly started ballooning out.

"This is unusual in Mai's case, because of her slim form and small structure, but not impossible. Thirdly, it is not possible to have your period whilst pregnant. But it is possible to experience vaginal bleeding for the duration of your pregnancy. To the woman experiencing it, it would feel and look the same as a normal period. That's probably what happened to Mai. It's not very common, but there have been women before who gave birth without ever knowing they had been pregnant all along, due to the symptoms not manifesting strongly enough.

"Now, because your job is so stressful and time-consuming, it would leave you with even less time to notice the very small signs of your pregnancy. In fact, I don't blame you for not noticing. Dr Davis, this is not your wife's fault in any way, it just happens sometimes."

Mai sat frozen, her mind barely comprehending what Emily was saying. She could see Naru was in a similar state of shock, though he didn't wear it as openly as she did. She could see his thoughts flying along a certain path only he knew. Naru glanced up sharply, his eyes flicking towards Emily before he turned back to Mai, even as he addressed the other woman. "Miss Taylor, you mentioned nosebleeds as a symptom…?"

Mai felt a sense of disbelief fill her. Naru couldn't be suggesting what she thought he was. She had always gotten nosebleeds for no reason, ever since she was a child. That didn't mean that she was suddenly pregnant!

"Yes, pregnant women may experience nosebleeds more frequently, because of the increased blood flow." Mai swallowed as Naru's serious gaze bore into her. This was starting to become more real by the second. Mai's mind raced along, trying to find more evidence for her supposed pregnancy. The very brief bout of cramps and nausea she had experienced; the nosebleeds, while always random and without reason, suddenly increasing; the slight weight gain, the fluttering feel in her stomach as Naru lied unconscious…

Mai flew up, her hands on her stomach, her gaze panicked as she watched Naru. **"Naru, remember when you fell unconscious and I told you I felt a strange feeling in my stomach before the power flowed out of me into you? You don't think…"** Eyes sharpening, Naru turned to Emily.

"Can you check the health of the fetus?" Emily nodded jerkily, lifting Mai's shirt and placing her cold hand on Mai's skin. "Sorry Mrs Davis, but I sense better with skin-to-skin contact." A few moments went by where the psychic sat with her eyes closed, her brow furrowed, until she sighed and finally sat back.

"It's fine, just a bit small, which would explain Mrs Davis' lack of belly. Also, it feels… hungry, almost? It's not as far as malnourished, but I can feel the fetus isn't getting all the vitamins it needs." Naru looked amused to Mai's eyes, though she could still see the small signs of anger on his body.

"Guess that explains why you were trying to empty our food supplies. Get something to eat Mai, we're getting out of here sooner rather than later. Miss Taylor, please let the other's know to come back. Oh, and fill them in before you arrive, I don't want any inane questions." Nodding, the young woman jumped up and about ran out of the room. Mai was once again aware of the tension that was strung between her and Naru and she could feel sweat beading on her forehead. Licking her lips, she spoke up hesitantly.

"Naru? Naru, I'm s-" She bit back tears as her husband held up his hand, his expression shuttered and he turned away, walking to the monitors. "Not now Mai. We can discuss this later, after the case is finished." Mai nodded, her throat tight and her eyes burning as she tried to hold back her tears.

"I…I'm just… I need-… shower…" Mai choked out her jumbled message, rushing past Naru and the rest of the team who had just returned. She wasn't aware of Alisha and Cian following her on Naru's gestures, she just knew that Naru hadn't stopped her. He hadn't even looked at her. Was he now so disgusted with her that he didn't want her anymore? That's probably it. He knew she was going to look like a beached whale now and he didn't want to sit with the mess a baby would make. If there was one thing Naru hated, it was chaotic and messy things and a baby was undeniably that.

Brushing her thick tears from her cheeks, she barely noticed that the hallucination on the hallway seemed to have lifted, as she could make her way down it even through her continuous stream of tears. Arriving at the small bathroom, she slammed the door behind her, pulling off her clothes and climbing into the shower. She turned the water to burning hot and beneath the water spray, she finally broke down.

Bawling her eyes out, she slipped to her knees, her entire body wracked with her sobs. She couldn't believe him! SHE COULDN'T BELIEVE HIM! He had also played a role in making this baby. She didn't pop one into existence by thought alone! Naru usually took care of the condom, as he hadn't wanted Mai on the morning after pill, as it messed with her body's cycle. That narcissistic, idiotic, big-headed, insufferably, hypocrite seemed to forget that it takes two to tango! How dare he push her away, ignore her and treat this as if she was the sole cause! Slamming her fist against the wall, Mai gave a scream of frustration and anger, before her body slumped. Leaning against the wall, Mai idly watched the water pounding onto her stomach before her face.

As her emotions settled, Mai sighed and her thoughts became calmer. What was she saying? Naru was just being Naru. She, more than anyone, knew the shock he had to be in at the moment. Naru was just acting like the idiotic scientist with the emotional range of a teaspoon that he was. He probably wasn't even angry at her, but at the situation they were in. After all, here they were, trapped in a building with a volatile spirit and she was a bit more than five months pregnant. She knew he loved her and if he hadn't ever wanted children, he would've gotten a vasectomy. The fact that he hadn't, meant he wasn't entirely opposed to the idea.

She couldn't believe they hadn't thought to talk about this before, but their four years of marriage seemed to short and they were still young. They had been so busy hunting ghosts and Mai studying psychology that they had no time to think of children. Sighing, Mai smiled ruefully. Storming off like a child probably wouldn't enamour Naru to her in his current mood, but at least she had calmed down and couldn't worsen the situation by saying the wrong thing, as she was wont to do.

Mai stepped out of the shower, wrapping a towel around her and searching for her clothes. She grimaced as she realised she would have to wear the same clothes again, since she hadn't bought a clean pair. Shrugging, she bent down to pick up her underclothes, when she felt a chill in the air. Freezing, she slowly exhaled, trying to calm her racing heart. Closing her eyes, she breathed deeply, centring herself and composing her mind.

She almost screamed as she opened her eyes to find two small see-through feet in her vision. Jerking back, Mai stared wide-eyed at the tiny child who stood in front of her, curiously regarding her with his unnaturally green eyes. Heart pounding, Mai realised that her charm that Ayako made her was still in her pile of clothes, as she had left it there when she took a shower. She swallowed, as her clothes were lying right by Daemon's feet.

"H-hello." She stuttered, slowly getting her breathing under control. She was hyper aware of everything around her and more specifically, of her unborn child resting within her body. She had to let Naru know. There was no camera in the bathroom, but there was a microphone, so maybe she could alert them that way.

"What are you doing here? Do you want to tell me something?" Daemon just continued to stare at her, before a small smile lighted his face, though his eyes were still solemn. Words echoed around her.

_**Look…and see the truth…** _

**Mai opened her eyes to find herself in the small padded room which she was certain was Daemon's room, though she wasn't sure where it was. The boy, probably around ten, was lying on his stomach as he drew with crayons on pieces of paper. He was humming disjointedly, his hair dishevelled and scars covering his back, which Mai could see due to Daemon not wearing a shirt. Instead, strange leather straps were tightened around his body, forming a type of harness, and various chains were connected to these straps. Mai looked in horror as the chains disappeared into the walls and roof, holding the boy in more or less the same position.**

**A clink sounded through the room and before Mai could even wonder about it, she saw one of the chains being pulled tight, jerking the boy's arms just bout out of his socket. He cried out, tears gathering in his eyes and a voice that she recognized as Dr Crowther's echoed through the room. "Bad boys need to be punished. This is nothing to what they will do to you Outside, demon spawn. Don't try to run again, do you hear me?"**

" **I-I didn't try to run! I ju-just wanted to look out of the window! I wouldn't have gone Outside! Pinkie swear! Please… please sir…stop. It hurts…" Daemon was trying to muffle his sobs, but the fat tears continued down his face unabashedly as snot mingled with spit and tears. The doctor didn't speak again and after a moment, the chains loosened, but Daemon just continued to lie there, his crayons and paper abandoned; crying like the pathetic creature he was made into.**

_**They taught me a lot…Mary especially taught me about the Outside, how if I was cured, I could go and live with normal people. But then, one year… I was punished.** _

**The scene changed to when Daemon looked about the same as when he was thirteen years old. A few more scars and his face a bit more angular, she would say it was either later in the year from her first dream, or he was maybe a year or two older. Despite his age, Daemon was cowering beneath a gurney, his pale arms wrapped over his head as if he was trying to hide his sickly body.**

**Or protect himself.**

" **You INSOLENT CHILD! IS WHAT I ASK SO DIFFICULT?! All I need is a little data to complete my experiment! All I want is to help you, yet you continue to fight against me, spouting this fucking crap about becoming normal and living outside. Don't think I don't know about Mary fucking Dale, filling your ears with this nonsense about being able to leave. You are and will forever be stuck here, since the taint of your blood cannot be erased! I already took care of Mary, she's now a permanent ward in the main building. Hopefully I can reverse the damage she did, now that there's no chance of her filling your head with more absurd ideas. The most you can get is the knowledge that your tainted blood is helping others. Now shut up, stop snivelling and get on this gurney!"**

**Sniffing heavily, Daemon crawled out from his hiding place, trembling as he climbed onto the gurney and was strapped down. The doctor injected him with a paralysing agent, before he pulled on some surgical gloves and took out a scalpel. Mai dry heaved as she watched the vile man cut a perfect crescent on the boy's scull, where Mai now noticed a patch of hair had been shaved. Peeling back the bloody skin, Mai felt her heart break as Daemon cried useless tears, his body unable to move as the doctor cut into him.**

**Taking what looked like a small saw, Mai turned away in nausea as she heard the sound of metal on bone and despite the paralyzing agent, whimpers escaped from the teen on the table. She fell down to her knees, clutching her stomach protectively as thick sobs about tore her body apart. She couldn't breathe; she couldn't think… this was,** _**this was** _ **…!**

**The loss of Daemon's whimpers had her looking up to see the boy had fallen unconscious, his chest rising and falling gently as the doctor ooh'ed and aah'ed over the part of the brain he could see. He was holding a tiny tweezer-like tool and just as he was about to start poking around, the door slammed open.**

**And Mai was jerked from her dream.**

GH

Naru stared unseeingly in front of him. His thoughts were slow and sluggish, his mind turning one piece of information over and over, examining it from every possible angle. He almost couldn't believe it, but after tallying all the facts and observations from over the months, he knew it was certainly possible.

Mai was pregnant.

His brain just about jump-started every time he thought those words and Naru couldn't even revel in the proud, happy feeling he could feel stewing in his chest. This was the worst time ever. With all the stress Mai had been experiencing over the last five month, they could have already damaged their child in a way that Emily couldn't see. He knew he hurt Mai's feelings with his dismissal of her, but he had to think now. He had to figure out a way to get Mai out of here and to the hospital. This case was too dangerous for her and he couldn't bear it if something happened to her or their child. He-

"Mr Davis! We lost Mai! We thought we were following her, but apparently we were caught in the hallucination, as we just realised we had been walking around Lab 2's observation room!" Naru cursed under his breath as he came out of his thoughts with a snap, realising he had been neglecting the monitors because he had been so deep in thought. Frantically scanning the screens, he flicked through them till he found the camera pointing at the bathroom's door. Just as he was scolding himself for showing some propriety and not placing a camera in the bathroom, Mai's voice crackled softly over the microphone that had been placed in the bathroom. Turning up the volume, he heard her speak again.

"-re you doing here? Do you want to tell me something?" Gritting his teeth, he turned the volume even higher, only to hear a boy's voice followed by a thud.

_**Look…and see the truth…** _

Ripping off the headphones, he barked out orders. "Miss Malakar, Mr Foster, follow me and get ready for a possible confrontation with our spirit. Mr O'Brian and Miss Taylor, check our progress and tell us if we go astray. I believe our spirit has pulled Mai in a vision and is probably preoccupied right now. Considering his singlemindedness, we should be able to reach her without any problems."

The four of his subordinates nodded and Naru took off, Alisha and Rhys following him as Cian watched their progress on the screens with Emily hovering behind him. Luckily, they didn't have a lot of trouble getting to the bathroom and Naru was never so glad that his theory that the spirit only focused on one thing was true. Bursting into the room, he saw Mai lying on the ice cold floor, her body barely covered with the towel. Daemon was crouched next to her, his hand lightly stroking her belly, but as Naru flung the door open, he looked up and disappeared, leaving Mai in the icy room.

"Mai!" Hurrying forward, Naru crouched down besides his wife, hissing as he felt her freezing skin. Picking her up, he made sure she was covered and he strode down the hallway. Before he could even ask, Alisha made a ring of fire around them, warming Mai up and giving some protection against potential attacks. They made it back to base without further mishap and everyone averted their eyes as Naru dressed Mai warmly, trying to get rid of the chill that clung to her body.

It would, however, only be an hour later that the petit woman wakes up to see Naru hovering next to her.

His eyes were slightly crinkled and his mouth pulled tight and she lifted a hand, smoothing out the lines of worry on his face. **"It's fine Naru, I'm alright. He only wanted to show me something. Really, I'm not hurt."** Those midnight blue eyes didn't soften, in fact, they became even harder. Mai's brow creased as she sat up, reaching out to her husband who was doing a good impression of being a statue. "Oliver…"

" **This time, Mai. Who's not to say you're going to go running off again? Maybe next time you will get hurt. Next time it will not be alright. I will not allow you or my child to be placed in such danger. And you are in constant danger on this case. Daemon seemed to have fixated on you and I will not juggle with your life or the life of our baby."** Naru had stood up as he spoke, his face hard and he grabbed her hand, pulling her up and along with him, even as his hand was unbelievably gentle around her frail wrist. Pulling her out the door, Mai saw he was heading towards the lower door, that led to the entrance hall and she felt her stomach drop.

" **Naru…Naru, what are you planning? You know we're stuck here. Naru!"** Her husband's steps were sure and his gazed fixed on the door.

" **I will get you out of here. As soon as you are outside, get to a hospital and call Martin. I will solve this case in the meantime, but my priority is getting you and our child outside this damned building to safety."** Naru ignored Mai's protests, his mind preparing as he started to build up his PK internally. He would blast that bloody door away if it meant letting Mai escape, even if he might experience some side effects afterwards. Exhaling heavily, he was just preparing to enact his plan, when the blasted boy's childish voice echoed through the corridor.

_**Demon children do not go outside…** _

Mai's hand was ripped from his and Naru spun around to see his wife, screaming, being dragged along the corridor to the top door that opened into the hallway. He jumped forward, trying to reach her, but even as she clawed at the floor, not finding any grip, Daemon was faster.

" _Mai!"_

" _Naru!"_

The team, who had followed them outside, tried to dive for Mai, but she was jerked sharply around them, her body sliding over the tiled floor at a dizzying pace. Naru sped up, determined to reach his wife before she reached the hallway.

" _Naruuuu!"_

_**Demon children do not go outside…** _

Diving forwards, Naru reached out, Mai's tear-stained face and large chocolate eyes gazing into his midnight blue as their fingers brushed. Then she was jerked to the side, her head slamming against the wall and her body becoming limp as she was pulled beyond the corner.

" _MAAIIII!"_

GH

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, I feel bad for leaving you on such a cliffhanger, but hey, the climax is upon us! I admit I feel some guilt for what I put Mai and Naru through, but they are strong and will work through it. Probably. Hopefully... Comment and give them some good luck?


	10. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Merry Christmas Eve! I hope you guys are all enjoying this festive season and because I love Christmas and believe it to be the holiday of giving (and annoying Christmas carols), I decided to give you guys some joy and post the chapter early.
> 
> MERRY CHRISTMAS!
> 
> Seeing as the actual Christmas day may be quite hectic or family orientated for most people, I will post this a day early and I sincerely hope you guys like it. 
> 
> Enjoy it^~^

**Chapter 9**

"Dr Davis! Dr Davis! OLIVER!" Angry blue eyes glared at the one who had dared to interrupt his frantic clicking of the monitors, but Cian stood his ground. "Mai is not going to be saved like this. If I'm right in my theory, then Mai has been taken to Daemon's private room. Now, we know from Mai's dreams and Alisha's experience that there was no seam that they could see, but then again, the room is padded. Alisha told us it looked like the standard room in an insane asylum, meaning a door could easily be hidden in the seams of the squared padded blocks."

Naru paused, took a deep breath, then nodded. His mind calming down, his cool mask slid onto his face and his eyes became determined as his mind processed Cian's theory at lightning speed. He stood, walked over to Mai's bag and picked up the shirt she had worn before. Concentrating, he performed his psychometry, trying to see where his wife was. He saw white padded walls, a hand lying stilly in his range of vision. He saw a door opening in the wall, leading to dark stairs that had another door with a bolt. It was locked from the inside. Just as he wanted to see beyond the door, almost glowing green eyes appeared in his vision, jerking him out of his concentration and he sat down heavily on the couch, holding his head as it pounded.

He tried to ignore the ominous feeling that had risen up in him at Daemon's interference in his vision and concentrated solely on what he could do now. Seeing as the building only has one floor, she had to be below ground.

"Right. First, let's check the Lab 2, as a lot of the activity happened there. Miss Taylor, you are to stay here and check the monitors for any sign of Mai. Radio us if you find her and keep these two charms on you in addition to the one you have. Everyone else, follow me. We need to find her before too much time has passed. She shouldn't be alone in her condition, especially not as the spirit is likely with her. First, we need to get past the hallucinations, otherwise we will never be able to conduct our investigations and find Mai."

Naru walked towards the door that led to the hallway and opened it. All looked innocent, but he knew as soon as he tried to walk through, then like the time he had tried to go after Mai, he would be caught in an hallucination. Since then, he had been creating and discarding plan after plan on how to overcome it, and so far, only one seemed remotely possible to do without anyone being injured. Hoping his admittedly dicey bet would work, he turned to Alisha.

"Miss Malakar, shoot one of your purifying arrows down the hallway from the doorway. Shoot it as close to the wall as possible. Now listen up, as soon as that arrow is fired, you are going to have to run. Keep your eyes on my back, don't look at anything else and follow my ever movement. We are going to need to be fast for this to work. That arrow cannot go more than seven paces in front of us, or we will be caught up again."

"Dr Davis, my arrow purifies evil. That's why it didn't work on Daemon, as he's technically not evil, or not yet. Would it be able to affect his hallucinations?" Naru nodded, his eyes gleaming as he thought over his plan.

"It should. I am going to channel a bit of my PK into it. It should be enough to disrupt the hallucination, but as soon as we fall too far behind, it won't help us anymore. When I call your name, Miss Malakar, send a controlled burst of fire forwards, as if you want to blow a wall out. Can you do that?"

"Yes, but I'll be tired afterwards."

"That's no problem. Alright, everyone ready? Miss Malakar, we're waiting on you." Alisha nodded, her eyebrows pulled together in concentration as her hands lifted, forming a flaming bow and an arrow made from blue, purifying flames. Naru placed his hand on her shoulder, channelling some of his PK into the arrow. The flames flickered and turned a pale yellow, almost crackling like electricity might.

"And,… now." Naru leaped forward as the arrow shot off, his legs pumping as he ran after the arrow, which luckily seemed to be longer and a bit slower with the addition of his PK. It also helped that Alisha hadn't spoken the blessing chant to enforce the arrow, making it easier to keep up. Still difficult, but manageable. His breath came out in gasps as he ran and he could hear the heavy footsteps behind him. Keeping half an eye on the wall, Naru saw a flash of grey before it disappeared and he leaped to the right, yelling out, "Miss Malakar!"

Naru felt the heat of the fire flow past in a giant flaming ball, colliding with the metal gate and blasting it off its hinges. Running forwards, Naru looked around to see a sign for Lab 4 to his right and Room 10 to his left and he knew they were in the correct corridor. Striding down, he breathed a sigh of relief that they had made it. He hadn't been sure if Alisha's power was strong enough to blast the gate away, much less through a wall, otherwise he would have just had her create an alternative entrance to the lab room. He was, however, a bit reluctant to resort to that, as he didn't know how structurally sound the building was and he didn't want to pay damages costs to their clients. Not to mention that if the building was weak, any destruction to its walls could lead to the secret room Mai was kept in to collapse, killing her.

"Spread out and search for any sign of a hidden doorway, a hollow wall or anything suspicious. The room wasn't on any blueprints, so we know they really didn't want someone to find it. I believe it would be kept out of the way, were no one could just stumble across it." With that, they all started searching, knowing that it was a race against time.

GH

Naru was frantic. A day had already passed since Mai had been taken and he knew that with her being pregnant, the baby would already be taking nutrients from her own body, even though Mai wouldn't be able to sustain it. So far, they had found no trace of any secret room or lever and Naru was in a deeply bad mood. The rest of the team, even though they continued searching, tip toed around their irate boss, afraid of inciting his particular brand of tongue-lashing fury. Cian had tried to find Mai's mind, but either he was being blocked or, the more sinister option, she was no longer in the range of his abilities.

"We've combed the last lab from top to bottom and can find nothing. Nothing out of place, no extra feature, nothing. We're starting on the right side rooms now, since most of the activity was centred around there." Naru nodded absent-mindedly, again trying psychometry, but still not being able to see past the glowing green eyes that watched him. His only saving grace was that Mai wasn't tinted with green, as that would mean she had died, but he was also worried over how unchanged her situation seemed.

They had to find her. He can't leave her any longer, or she could really be in danger, not only from the spirit, but also from her own body.

GH

Mai didn't know how long she had been here. All she knew was that her head pounded as she faded in and out of consciousness, never awake long enough to really take in her surroundings. All she could see was white each time she opened her eyes and so she kept them closed. It was so cold down here and Mai could feel her body shivering, though she couldn't get the energy to actually do something about it. She curled tighter, trying to protect her belly and baby.

Naru will come, she had to believe that.

GH

Naru ran a hand through his mussed hair, his eyes tinged red with worry and exhaustion as he scoured the room. Cian was on the other side, doing the same, but despite the extensive search they did of each room, they had yet to find anything. At the rate they were going, they weren't going to make it and Naru couldn't accept that.

His mind continued to torment him with images of Mai's cold, dead body, ballooned grotesquely in a pregnancy that would never reach its end. He imagined Luella's kind face, broken in agony at the knowledge that she had lost a grandchild she had never even gotten the chance to know. He imagined the way Martin would bury himself in work, blocking out the world along with his pain. He imagined how SPR would fall apart without Mai's steady and cheerful presences keeping them together. How everyone would smile falsely and try to be strong, to stay together, only for the memory of her to overcome them and force them to isolate themselves as they dealt with her loss. How by the time they had accepted it and tried to live again, they would find that they had all become strangers.

Most of all, he imagined himself. How he would throw himself into his work, only to realise it didn't interest him without Mai there. How he would shut down and break his mother's heart even further. How his interest and curiosity would die along with her. He would never move on, never recover. He will grow old alone, left behind by another loved one and he would torture himself over his inability to have saved her.

Naru's eyes hardened and he searched with renewed vigour. He couldn't allow it to become like that.

He had to find her.

GH

Mai woke up slowly, her head pounding as she groaned. Raising a hand, she gingerly touched the side of her head above her ear and whimpered when her questing fingers encountered the tender bump. Sticky blood coated her fingers, but it seemed clotted, so she didn't have to worry about bleeding out. Her hands pressed over her stomach, her mind filled with worry, but she couldn't feel anything. She had felt nothing this entire pregnancy, so she didn't know why she thought it would change now.

_**Are you alright?** _

Mai looked up, not even having the energy to be afraid or shocked at the wavering form of Daemon crouching before her. Sighing, she pushed herself upright with a great amount of trouble, hand steadying her head as it felt as if it was splitting apart. She leaned against the wall, her vision swimming and her breathing heavy, before she looked at the boy in front of her.

"Not really, my head hurts."

_**I'm sorry I hurt you. I just wanted to help you. It's not safe outside.** _

"I guess it's ok. Why did you take me though? Because Naru wanted to leave?" The boy nodded, worrying his lip beneath his teeth. Mai gasped a bit in pain as she shifted, her head ringing as her face pulled at the lance that pierced through her.

_**It's really dangerous, especially for your baby. Children aren't safe Outside, you can't leave or they will torture and kill your baby! You are a bit different from me, as I could never do the things you guys can, but my blood was dirty all the same. All you people are freaks like me, but you guys don't seem to realise it. So I have to protect you.** _

Mai felt like laughing and crying at the same time. This little boy was trying to save them, just as they were trying to save him. In the process, no saving was done. "Daemon, if I stay here, I will die."

Mai cursed her tired mind as the boy flinched away, having forgotten the connotation he held to the word. As she thought of a way to save the situation, vague memories filtered into her mind. It was of Yasu, speaking about an essay he had to write for his philosophy course. He had told her of the concept of Eudaimonia, which had interested him and so he had gone deeper, to find the actual meaning behind the word.

"You know, your name is nothing to be ashamed of." The boy's face darkened, but being so close to him, Mai could see the hurt in his eyes, as if asking 'why he had received this fate?'. If she could help him by providing another meaning for his name, she would.

_**It means demon in Latin! It's just further proof that I'm not normal. My insane mother gave birth to me and passed on the curse, Doctor said so! I'll never be free of this taint, so I'll always stay a demon spawn.** _

Her heart breaking once more, Ma could feel tears fogging up her vison. No child should think of himself the way he did, should have had to experience what he did. Never before had she had such a strong desire to help a spirit, to comfort this small boy who was keeping her prisoner in the hopes of saving her and her child. Mai could feel unconsciousness encroaching, but she was determined to at least get this message across.

"But you know, Daemon is also a word used to describe divine assistance, a guiding spirit to help people in their lives. I truly believe that you stand for that. Do not look at the negative use of the word, look towards its original meaning. It was one meant to give hope to people, to help them survive. Isn't that what you're doing now? Helping us by trying to protect us. The word was even used in the Greek concept of eudemonia, which was the ultimate happiness a human could achieve. Daemon, your name has such a rich meaning, do not get stuck on the comparatively small meaning a cruel man gave it."

_**You…You're not lying…? My name means all that?** _

Mai smiled, barely able to keep open her eyes. "Yes, it does. But Daemon, that isn't all that cruel man has lied to you about. He… also… l-" Disregarding Daemon's chill as his ghostly hands tried to pat her cheeks to wake her up, Mai slipped into the darkness.

" **Quick, put everything away! Edward Wakefield had visited the main building two days ago. He had not yet found out about the building then, but he knows now and is coming to visit. I heard one of the previous nurses, a Mary Dale has told him when he toured the main building. Is the boy in his room?"**

" **No sir, he's in la-"**

**The voices faded away and Mai could see a single person, a scrawny child of fifteen crying on his own. She couldn't move, even though his pitiful voice pulled at her heartstring, she could only watch as a child's innocence was broken again and again. Her own tears slipped over her cheeks as her mouth moved silently, uselessly, her vocal cords chained.**

**The scene changed again, this time more familiar as Mai looked upon Dr Crowther admiring Daemon's brain, as the boy lay passed out on a gurney. The door slammed open, a heaving Dr Haslam standing in the doorway as his chin wobbled precariously.**

" **Bryan, get the boy in his room, we haven't much time! Mr Wakefield is coming and if he sees the boy, we're ruined, I tell you! The public is already making an uproar about the main building, Daemon's case will turn them against us! Hurry man, we don't have time to close him up!" Mai watched with horror as the doctors manhandled the limp body of the child they had ruined, ignoring the trail of blood that escaped from his scull as they carried him from the room. Mai followed them, but as soon as she exited the lab, she found herself in the boy's personal room. A small section of the wall, one of the 60×60 padded blocks, swung open and Daemon was thrown in.**

**Ma saw a glimpse of a dingy staircase beyond, but before she could further investigate, the tiny door slammed shut and she was left with a bleeding boy. Whom she saw was beginning to rouse himself. Walking closer, Mai crouched down, wishing she could offer the whimpering boy some comfort, but this was the past and she could not affect it. Daemon sat up, his hand coming up to his head and he cried out in pain as he encountered the surgical hole, about two centimetres in diameter. Crying softly, he crawled to the wall, slumping against it and staring ahead with a dull gaze. His blood slid past him, steadily leaving his body, before slowing to a sluggish trickle. It stained the perfect white of the walls, leaving an ugly smear on the stainless white.**

_**Heh, looks like the walls are crying blood…** _

**Mai grimaced at Daemon's soft words that reached her ears and had to admit that it really did look that way. The teen seemed to sink even further into himself, not even making a sound or twitch. He had no spirit left and could not move much.**

**Mai couldn't take the oppressive silence, the depressing scene, the feeling of this being final; so she began to talk. "You shouldn't give up here you know. The outside world has so many amazing things. There are bodies of water so large, you cannot see the end, there are fields of grass that go rolling on and on, looking like a green carpet that covers the earth. Flowers of every colour imaginable exist, in all shapes and sizes, just like people. There are mountains that look as if they're touching the heavens and trees that look like giants dotting the earth. That's not even to speak of all the other things that exist. There are hundreds of animals, big ones, small one, meat-eating ones and plant-eating ones. There are-"**

**As Mai sat and talked and gestured with her hands, the things she described played out around her, dancing around the small corner of light she and the boy inhabited. Her voice dipped and soared as she spoke, her own excitement and amazement at the world shining from her eyes. Colours played like the northern lights around them, animals and people walking and dancing through it, as she told of the rich cultures, the experiences of the outside world. She told of how it could be scary sometimes, but also how it was worth the fear one felt. She told of how a lot of people thought that what comes after death was even more amazing than what they knew.**

**It felt as if she was sitting there for days, as Daemon's past self slowly died, with no one coming to check on him and no one caring about his critical condition. It was as she was describing the delicacy of a butterfly, that Mai realised the tiny form besides her had stopped breathing, his body as still in death as it was for days before in life. Her voice stuttered to a stop, and she reached out, even though she knew her hand would pass right through the vision. The cinnamon-haired woman couldn't take the pain in her heart anymore as the vision of the boy faded like a mirage and she collapsed forwards, burying her arms in her head as she cried, great sobs wracking her body.**

**A light touch on her hair had her raising her tear-stained face, only to meet tearful emerald eyes. Without thinking further, she let out a sob and threw her arms around the boy, pulling him closer and rocking him back and forth as he clung to her like a limpet. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm so sorry you had to live like that. I'm sorry." Mai knew she wasn't making any sense, for what reason did she have to apologise for something that happened in another country before she was even born, but the words wouldn't stop.**

**Daemon cuddled further into her and they sat like that for several minutes as Mai's shirt was soaked through, with her own and Daemon's tears mingling. Finally, Daemon detached himself, looking up at her.**

_**Were all those things you showed me true? Were they real?** _

**Mai nodded, realising that even though she had been talking to his past self, his spirit had listened in. Smiling, she cupped his cheek, her voice gentle. "Yes, they are. There is so much more that I didn't show you, but you can see them for yourself. No one knows exactly what the afterlife consists of, but I can promise you that all the spirits I've seen choosing to follow the light, did so smiling and laughing. That light was so warm and welcoming and I cannot wait for my time to embrace it. But Daemon, your time is now. You don't need to be afraid, I promise. My brother-in-law is already there, as are my parents. Your mother and father is also there, and Nurse Mary as well."**

" **But… what about people like me and you? People that aren't normal? I mean, that old man that always came here to clean was normal, but we are different. Do… we also get to… can I also… is it ok…?"**

**Mai hugged the frail body closer, her hands caressing the thin, soft strands of hair as she replied, her whispered answer filled with love and confidence.**

" **Yes, it's more than ok…"**

**Daemon looked into her eyes, his own brighter than she's even seen it before. A true smile lit his face as his spirit morphed into the form of his fifteen year old self, though far healthier than he ever was in life. Mai felt a pang in her heart, knowing that under different circumstances, he would have been a handsome boy and an even handsomer man.**

_**I'm so sorry, for doing this to you. I didn't understand… I-I hope you get out of this. I will try to let your special person know, but I can feel my soul being tugged.** _

**Ruffling his hair, Mai kissed his forehead, before grinning at him. "Don't worry about me! Naru is smart; he will find me for sure. You just embrace the light." Daemon grinned, a dimple appearing in his cheek, before his face turned upwards, his expression serene as he was enveloped in the golden light. Mai could feel her own soul straining towards it, but her love for Naru and her new family had her pulling back. Waving, Mai watched as Daemon, after more than 150 years of isolation and entrapment, finally moved on and found peace.**

GH

Naru jerked upright, his eyes fixed on the spirit that stood just outside the base door. The ghost looked different from how Naru remembered him before. Instead of the waif-like three year old appearance, he was looking at a healthy fifteen year old, who was clean and stood straight. He could see Daemon's mouth moving, but no sound travelled past the barrier of Ayako's charms. Disregarding all cautions towards his own safety, he strode hurriedly towards the spirit, stepping outside the barrier.

_**Your wife-…-ound. You need to-…urry!** _

Naru frowned as Daemon flickered, his mage wavering and disappearing in golden light. Realising that the sprit was being cleansed right before his eyes, his blue orbs widened and he called out, "Wait! Where's Mai? Where should I search?"

_**Ro-…-ht! under-… -ig-**_ Naru could feel his despair deepening, as he could barely make out anything. Most of the teen's body was now gone and his mouth and face also disappeared in a shower of golden light. Naru felt like screaming, though he would never give in to such a primal urge. He watched in agony as the last of Daemon disappeared, but just when he thought the possibility of a clue was gone forever, one last word echoed through his mind, as if urging him onwards.

_**Eight…** _

GH

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I sincerely hope you guys enjoyed your Christmas present and that everyone who wished and hoped Daemon would pass on peacefully are now happy:) I have to say, I loved this chapter, so please comment, so I know how you guys experienced it!
> 
> Also, the part where Mai was describing everything with the images playing around her, I imagined it something like Brother Bear, when the spirits appeared. I also hope everyone found the reason why Daemon was so fixated on Mai satisfying. I never wanted Daemon to be a psychic, I just wanted to show how terrible circumstances were then and how it warped his view.
> 
> Please comment, as a return Christmas present to me, I would love that!


	11. Chapter 10 with Epilogue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Right, you guys are seriously lucky, as I was originally only going to post this the 1st of January, especially for New Years, but I felt you guys deserved it early;) That, and I'm possibly going to be without internet on New Year's hahahah. So, for everyone in advance, HAPPY NEW YEAR'S!
> 
> Lots of grateful hugs to the readers who read, commented and left kudos for this story, it was an honour writing for you and I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it! Also, thanks LukaLover for commenting, you're awesome!
> 
> Without further ado, please Enjoy the last chapter and Epilogue of Don't Go Outside!

**Chapter 10**

White.

White, white, _whitewhitewhitewhitewhitewhiteWHITE!_

Thin arms curled tighter around shaking knees and whimpers filled the small, empty room. The sound seemed to bounce off the padded walls, mocking Mai and cruelly taunting her about her inability to leave.

_It was too white…_

Eyes squeezed shut tightly, knowing that if she opened them, horrible things would play out before her. Taunting voices came from non-existent shadows; because in this room, there was nothing to cast shadows.

_Yet it seemed to writhe in shadowed presences…_

The tears on her cheeks had long since dried up in uncomfortable tracks, staining her face along with the blood from her gnawed lips. Light scratches, like from walking through a bush, covered Mai's arms and permanent shivers wracked through her body.

_It was too silent, yet so loud at the same time…_

It had been about a day since Daemon was cleansed and Mai could feel the lack of any food or water getting to her. Her weight had rapidly dropped as the hours passed without any sustenance and a person could now easily see Mai's pregnant belly, though it was still not as big as one would think it should be. No extra fat clinged to her hips, arms or legs and she felt lost in her own skin. Her lips were chapped and her eyes dull as she rested her hands on her belly, her wedding ring hanging loosely from her finger.

Mai could feel her body slowly shutting down and she didn't even have the energy to worry about it. Her stomach was fluttering, as if a butterfly was trapped inside and she lightly moved her fingers over it, about the only part of her body she could still move. Her body no longer had anything sustaining it and to protect her baby, it was sending everything she had towards it. She gasped weakly as she felt a pulling sensation from around her stomach, her abdominal muscles clenching and releasing, the cramps rippling through her. The thought of lying there with this unknown pain in this room frightened her beyond belief…

_Though as much as this room frightened her, what waited outside frightened her even more. Horrible things waited for those who left the safety of the isolated room…_

Wait, no that isn't right… that isn't what Mai thought. She was merely soaking up the negative feelings that had stewed in this room for more than 150 years. Why should she be afraid to go outside it? Naru was outside; he was her reason for living. He and this child they were going to have. She had to keep strong…

For Naru.

GH

Naru, Alisha, Cian and Emily were all crammed into the patient room 8, searching for the hidden door Naru was sure led to Mai. After they had confirmed Daemon was no longer on this plane of existence, they had immediately tried to contact Martin. But either their electronics were permanently damaged from the interference the spirit had caused, or there was some external cause they weren't aware of, as they couldn't call or email Naru's father. Naru had sent Rhys to fetch his father as he and the rest continued their search. It had now been two days since Mai was taken and Naru was frantic. On average, a person only lived 2-3 days without food and water and with her being pregnant as she was, it would be even worse for her.

Naru's analytical and rational mind was listing all the symptoms his wife wold be experiencing, remembering old article's he'd read in medical journals and news headlines about people trapped in the rubble of buildings after some natural disaster. As his fingers searched and pulled and pushed along the seams of the padded walls, his mind conjured worse and worse images; the most terrible thing about them being that they reflected reality accurately. It had only been about ten minutes since Rhys left, but it felt longer than that and Naru felt like cursing, even though he knew it was his own worry that caused time to seem like it was dragging by.

"Naru, I think I found it!" Spinning around, Naru looked across the tattered run-down room towards Alisha, who was rattling a panel of the wall. It was two 60×60cm padded blocks that were just a bit looser than the rest of them, though she couldn't seem to get it open. He was too afraid to blast it in, as he had no idea if Mai would be in danger from that. He had seen that this door would lead to some stairs, which would lead to another door that led to Daemon's room, but he knew this door had a bolt mechanism on the inside sealing it. It probably it had a lever somewhere they could use to open it, but he was certain they didn't have time to search for it.

He cursed his short-sightedness, as he had sent Rhys, the only guy that could safely teleport objects, away; as he knew the dangers of using his powers even for something as small as this, especially as he had had a close call the day before. In his hand, he clutched Mai's shirt, his mind still awash from his latest use of psychometry. His vision had been tinged green around the edges, not enough to indicate Mai's death, but she was certainly busy dying and he was determined to reach her before it.

GH

Mai gasped as her stomach pulled tight again, tears she didn't even know she had left squeezing past her eyes. Her body was clawing for anything to support itself, any form of energy to sustain her a bit longer. It pushed and pulled and teared, desperate to save her even as her baby took all her body's nutrients. Naru had to arrive now, or they were going to lose their first child. The agony that thought caused her had her sobbing, her fingers clenching and unclenching on her stomach.

She was praying to every possible deity that Naru would appear next to her, that he would figure out this puzzle. She wanted him there with the entirety of her being, wanted him to turn this impossible situation around. She wished she could do something to aid him, but her strength was so low she even had trouble breathing. Yet her thoughts were filled with Naru's face, his voice, his love that she basked in every day, the tingle of his PK playing over her skin…

She gasped again as something in her pulled tight.

GH

Naru grunted as something slammed into his body, his PK rising up to meet it as it pushed and pulled. He steadied himself with a hand against the wall, sweat breaking out along his back.

_This familiar sensation…_

The only time he had ever felt this way, was when Gene had still been alive and they had 'thrown', for lack of better words, his PK between them to build it up. It wasn't exactly the same sensation, but it was close. He hadn't felt this in control in a long time. Not sure what was going on, but willing to try anything to reach his wife and child, he threw the power back along the thin connection it had travelled, hoping he was making the right choice.

GH

Mai moaned as power surged through her limp body, increasing the level of pain she felt. Her body couldn't handle this much power, yet it continued to draw it closer. She felt as if her very veins were widening, as if the basic makeup of her body was changing, morphing to accommodate this strange power. A feeling of loss swept through her, causing her breath to catch at the raw agony it inflicted on her, before the roaring, frightening power filled the gap.

Her gut clenched as she was about to lose consciousness and Mai knew that passing out now, with this amount of PK flowing through her unguarded and weak body would be disastrous. At best it would slow her heart and cause a heart failure; at worst it would tear her body apart, until she was merely a smear on this room.

She gritted her teeth as she pushed and pushed and flung the PK back to where she instinctively knew Naru was and hoped it was enough. She sighed in relief; sure Naru would be able to get to her now. A sharp pain rippled through her abdomen and the fluttering in her stomach increased ten-fold. The fluttering turned into a squirming feeling, before it escalated and the cinnamon-haired woman felt her child trashing inside her body. Her hands could feel the skin undulating where the baby kicked and strained against it, she could feel her small child struggling inside of her, as if trying to get out. Her face pulled in anguish as her hips jerked, her body unable to prevent itself from being jerked minutely by the infant's flailing. Tears poured down her cheeks as she could do nothing but lie there as her baby died inside of her.

_It was too late…_

Her eyes involuntarily closed as a wave of exhaustion and numbness flowed over her and she could practically feel her heart beat slowing and her blood turn to ice in her veins. This was probably what Naru felt when he overused his PK and despite her struggle, she couldn't stay awake.

She slipped away.

GH

Naru was ready this time and as he caught the surging PK, he let it flow through his body, holding it and directing it at the door. Yellow lightning dripped upwards from him as his clothes flapped in a breeze of his own making and, ignoring the astonished expressions of his co-workers, he moulded his PK around the door, like a casing and _pulled_.

With a screech, the padded block was ripped from the wall to leave a gaping hole behind that showed dingy stone stairs and long empty cobwebs. Making sure with his PK that the internal structure of the building was still sound and not in any danger of collapsing, he started forwards. Striding down without waiting for the rest, the PK surrounding his body providing ample light, he reached the second door. Feeling a sense of urgency fill his movements, Naru brushed his hand over the bolt and lock, clicking it open as he pressed the protesting, rusted door open. The scent of almost stale air met his nose but he paid it no mind as he got down on his knees and crawled through. His gaze immediately zeroed in on the almost skeletal form of his wife, who was lying unnaturally still, except for the small minute jerks her body gave every now and then.

He didn't even notice the small pile of yellowish bones in the corner as he crawled the few feet that separated him from his wife, nor the presence of his team members as they entered the room behind him. Pulling her upright, he clutched her tightly to him and paled when he realised he could not feel her breathing. Pressing his finger to Mai's wrist, he cursed as he felt no pulse, his mind immediately speeding up with adrenalin.

His mind immediately catalogued her appearance, noting the pale, thin skin, the contours of her bones straining against said skin, the unnatural stillness as she laid there, the slightly blue tint to her chapped lips. More than anything else, he noticed the way her skin moved sluggishly around her stomach, the way every now and then she seemed to twitch, before, all of a sudden, even that small movement stopped.

"No no no nonono, come on Mai, don't give up on me now! Come on!" He laid her onto her back and blanched at the way her belly stuck out from her body, her one hand still protectively cradling it. Not sure if he would damage her fragile body more by performing CPR with her in this condition, he hesitated for a second, only to be pushed away.

"Move!" Emily was crouched over Mai, her face serious and her hands pressed against Mai's skin. He could see the way her gaze seemed to glaze over, as if she was staring into Mai's body, which was probably close to what she was actually doing. Droplets of sweat dripped from her brow and ran into her eyes but she didn't even pause to wipe them away. Her arms were trembling and her breath shallow, but still she struggled to heal Mai. Cian was talking urgently in the background and one part of Naru's mind realised he was calling Mr Collins probably, to indicate that they had to come now, not argue with Rhys about trivial matters. Naru would be happier if Mai was taken to the hospital their family had visited for years, not one that mainly focused on mental health, but they had no other option at this point in time.

"Damn it, I'm losing her again! Mr Davis, tremendous strain has been placed on her body, I can't get it to heal. The fetus is also in trouble, I am literally keeping it alive right now. She needs professional help, at the moment the fetus is in danger because she is, so as soon as she stabilises, the fetus should as well. Come on Mai!" Naru felt nausea push up into his throat, but he couldn't allow it to make it to the surface. He had to stay calm. He had to stay focused, as the life of his wife and unborn child depended on him.

"Can you continue what you're doing as I move her?" Emily nodded, the strain of using her ability taking its toll on her as her low stamina hindered her efforts. Naru slid his arms around Mai, sliding her onto a sitting position, he couldn't pick her up entirely, as they still had to crawl through the small square door, so instead he slid her along the floor gently, grateful for the dirty, but padded floor. Ducking his head, he moved through the door and with Alisha's help, he got Mai through and into his arms, climbing the stone stairs and ducking through the next door. Emily was with him every step of the way, her hand still clutching Mai's as she strained to keep both Mai and the baby alive. Alisha had run out before them, opening the doors and leading the medical personnel who came rushing in with a gurney towards Naru.

Naru gently placed her on the gurney, brushing a few strands of hair from her face as her head lolled to the side. Emily was on the other side of the gurney, still holding Mai's hand and doctors were setting up drips and machines as they ran towards the main building. The sooner they got her into the hospital where the right equipment was, the better. Naru saw the building which was part of the hospital get closer and the doctors moved faster, shouting back and forth between themselves. Finally, Naru couldn't hold on any longer as they neared the surgery room, despite how much he wished he could.

He had never been as afraid as he was that moment that Mai's hand slipped from his and she was rushed away amidst shouts and flurried movement.

GH

_Beep…beep…beep…_

Mai's fingers twitched as she slowly came to, her mind still fuzzy and chaotic. Her body felt heavy, her eyes gritty and her breathing sounded laboured.

_Drip…drip…drip…_

She frowned slightly at the muted sounds around her, the beeping of machines and dripping water confusing her. _Where was she? What had happened?_

_Beep…beep, beep, beepbeepbeep…_

_Was she alone? Where was Naru?_

Her mind started to fill with panic, but the slow, steady breathing beside her had he calming down a bit, listening to the sound she had missed before. Her heartbeat slowed again as she realised she wasn't alone and she felt a sudden urgency to see Naru's face, who she assumed was the one sitting beside her. Cracking her eyes open, she moaned softly as the light almost blinded her and she resolved to take it slower. Peeking through her lashes, she waited till her sight adjusted and so slowly opened her eyes, blinking away the sun dots. Looking to her left, she saw it was indeed Naru sitting beside her bed, his eyes closed as he slept.

Glancing out the window behind him, she assumed it was just before eight in the morning, as the sun was just rising in the cold January air and reflecting off the small piles of snow that was on the windowsill. Naru must have been exhausted to actually fall asleep and she turned back to scrutinize her husband closer. Now that she was closely examining him, she could see the lines of worry and exhaustion on his face and her heart gave a pang, as she knew she was the one who had put them there. Reaching out a hand, she gently slid it along his cheek, the touch making him open his eyes as he was roused from his sleep.

Seeing her awake, she saw his eyes widen slightly, before his face seemed to relax in what she determined was relief. His hand lifted to settle over hers and in a rare show of love, he leaned into it, before turning his head and kissing her palm.

" **Hey…"** She whispered softly, her gaze riveted to his.

" **Hey…"** He returned and they sat in a comfortable silence, not breaking their much needed eye-contact. A flutter in her abdomen had her finally glancing away, her gaze pulled towards her belly, which was still slightly raised, but not by much.

" **Is…?"** Too afraid to finish her question, Mai squeezed her eyes shut, remembering the painful cramps and the wash of power through her body. She had been so sure she was losing their child, but then again, she had been certain that she would die before Naru reached her in her last moments.

" **It was touch and go for a moment. There were a few hours where the doctors were certain neither of you would make it. But, our son is fine, as are you. You did well, Mai."** Mai lifted her startled eyes towards her husband, who was gracing her with one his rare true smiles. Her eyes filled with tears as her lower lip trembled.

"… **Son? We're having a son?"** Naru nodded, his eyes bright and Mai laughed through her tears. Naru was stroking her hair, his eyes soft and Mai smiled a teary, but happy smile at him. She was so grateful their child was alright. So grateful…

" **But Mai, it's not going to be easy. We were this close to losing him and the doctors don't want to risk this pregnancy any more than it already was. It seemed as if our son had suddenly lost a lot of energy, making his body go into shock. I'm still not completely certain what happened, but I have a few theories we can test out. However, that will only happen after you give birth. The doctors have assigned you to mandatory bed rest and to ensure you and our son stay safe, they're sending a nurse with us to our home.**

" **I'm sorry to say, but we'll have to stay in England for the next five months. It's too dangerous to fly back to Japan, especially as we're already transferring you to Addenbrooke's Hospital within a few days. As it is, they think that it's highly likely our son will be born premature, so you're going home till you're about in the middle of your seventh month and then you will be transferred to Addenbrooke's Hospital again for the last two months of your pregnancy."**

Mai felt her smile slip, knowing how close they had been to losing their son if the doctors were doing all this. She swallowed and inhaled deeply, before her face became determined. **"Of course, I'll do anything to ensure we don't lose out first child. Even if that means staying in bed for almost five months."** Mai blanched at the words she said aloud, it now really sinking in how long she would be bed-ridden, but it didn't diminish her determinacy to pull through.

" **Good girl. On the other hand, the case was solved perfectly. I assume it was you who convinced Daemon to pass on, as we didn't do anything in that direction?"** Mai nodded, happy that the sweet boy had found peace. **"Well, we found some old documents in his room. It seemed that when Edward Wakefield went to inspect the asylum, Bryan Crowther and John Haslam had thrown all documents regarding Daemon into the room with him, to ensure no one ever found out about his existence. Raising a child in the asylum would even have made the people of those times raise up a fuss. However, after Wakefield's visit, Haslam and Crowther were 'let go' from the institute, along with a lot of the personnel, and so no one knew about Daemon. The one nurse who might have rescued him, according to your dreams, one Mary Dale, we have confirmed had died as a patient in the main building shortly after Wakefield's first visit."**

Mai nodded, already having suspected something like that being the cause and sighed. It didn't help if she tore herself up about it, it had already happened and she could do nothing about it. She had already done all she could and ensured Daemon got proper rest. Speaking of proper rest…

" **What about Daemon's body?"**

" **We found it in the corner of the room. It's been reduced to bones and teeth because of the bacteria in the air, but we had someone go fetch it and gave him a proper burial between the trees of the grounds. A small headstone has been placed there for him and any possible patients like him."** Mai nodded satisfied and she relaxed back into her pillows, which Naru had raised for her so that she could slightly sit up. She looked up as Naru spoke again.

" **My mother and father are outside, as well as Miss Malakar, Miss Taylor, Miss Reid, Mr Foster and Mr O'Brian. They want to see you if you're up to it. Lin and Madoka are returning tomorrow and Matsuzaki-san, Takigawa-san, Brown-san and Hara-san are arriving the day after tomorrow. Yasuhara is coming in a week, as he had university tests to finish."** Mai nodded and smiled in excitement as Naru smirked and left the room to tell her visitors she's awake.

Watching his strong back as he walked from the room, Mai smiled softly to herself, knowing that the incoming months will be hard but not caring, as she will have the support of Naru and their family.

After all, she could do anything with Naru by her side…

**Epilogue**

**Nine years later-**

" **So how's it going with Koizumi? Has she finally accepted what happened to her?"** The red-haired priestess asked the cinnamon haired woman. The two women were standing in a spacious garden, holding some tea as they conversed about the brunette's latest therapy patient.

" **Yes, she's doing much better. I mean, it was awful, having your father try to kill you while possessed by your twin sister, but she's finally moving on after a year of therapy. It's times like these that I'm grateful I completed my psychology course, so that these people can actually talk to someone that won't send them away in a straight-jacket."**

" **I always knew you'd be good at working with people. Much better than your husband at any rate. Ah, wait, speaking of husbands, I see mine doing something stupid, so please excuse me for a minute."** The chocolate eyed woman laughed as her old friend marched off towards the monk who, after all these years, still had his ponytail and childish demeanour.

"Mum! Kaachan, look, look!" Thirty-two year old Mai crouched down, smiling at the two adorable four year olds that bounced in front of her. Their dark hair and eyes were sparkling in happiness as their tiny hands were held out, each showing off the teddy they had gotten from Luella for Christmas.

" **Wow, look how beautiful they are! Megumi, Taiki, did you say thank you to grandma?"** Two pairs of eyes widened in horror as the small children realised they hadn't, in fact, thanked their grandmother and they zoomed off, crying out 'Obaachan, Obaachan, Grammy!' as they ran into Luella's arms. Mai chuckled as she watched her twins sped off, the small boy and girl full of energy as usual.

Megumi Luella Davis, or Shibuya Megumi as Japan knew her, and Taiki Martin Davis, otherwise known as Shibuya Taiki, were born five years after Mai had given birth to their oldest son. Though they weren't technically identical, they acted much the same, though Mai was sure that would change as they grew up. Megumi, meaning _blessing_ and loosely named after Mai's mother, had received her father's hair and eyes and, all in all, about the only thing she had received from Mai was her body structure; though Mai was certain her only daughter would grow taller than her. Taiki, meaning _great radiance_ and named for Mai's father Taikyu, had also received Naru's hair; though his eyes were a deep brown like Mai's, even as the form was Naru's. Mai was grateful that Taiki, at least, had taken Naru's body structure, as she already felt guilty enough giving her small stature to their first son.

"Kazuki-nii-chan!" Mai giggled softly as her two four year old tackled her miracle child, who was turning 9 in a few weeks in February, and clambered all over him as he scowled jokingly at them. As much as the twins had inherited Mai's personality, Kazuki Gene Davis had inherited his father's personality, tempered a bit with Mai's temperament. He was short but lean, his face angular like Naru's, but with Mai's chocolate eyes and nose. His hair was a deep brown, almost black, but not with the same blueish tint her other children had inherited from their father. If one looked closely at Kazuki's eyes, you feel see deep blue specks in his brown irises, as well as a thin ring of midnight blue around his pupil.

Mai's smiled in remembrance as she thought about her difficult first pregnancy and her tiny baby that had been born at 28 weeks. She had gone into an early labour and after several heart-stopping moments, her son had been born, though he had to stay in the hospital for a further two months and a bit. It had been a difficult birth, placing a lot of strain on her body, which was why she and Naru had waited five years till they had the twins. As it was, the strain of two babies on her body had pushed her to her limit and after giving birth safely to them, she had been told she would never again be able to bear a child. Mai had been a bit depressed for a while after that, but luckily she had three amazing children, along with a secretly loving husband to help her out of her slump. Along with the accomplishment she felt when helping the people who were traumatised by supernatural events with her PhD in psychology, Mai had realised that not being able to have children, when she already had three, was something she could live with and she had moved on with her life.

"Mum? Are you alright?" Mai looked up to see her eldest, with his younger siblings hanging onto his hands, watching her worriedly, his eyebrows scrunched together. She reached out and ruffled his hair, still marvelling at the British accent Naru had manged to instil in all their children. She honestly sometimes felt quite jealous as she watched her eldest, and to a lesser degree her younger ones, switch flawlessly from Japanese to English, without any left-over accent; because while she no longer had trouble with the language, she still had a slight Japanese accent when speaking it.

"Yes love, I'm fine. Just thinking a bit too hard."

" **Be careful Mai, we don't want you to lose more brain cells by straining them."** Mai whirled around, her flashing eyes meeting her husband's silently laughing ones and she pouted crossing her arms.

" **Tousan is being mean! Mean meanie!"** Mai laughed loudly as two dark blurs attached themselves to Naru, beating their tiny fists on his legs as they scowled adorably up at him. Naru scowled right back, picking them up and carrying them like sacks of potatoes under his arms. **"I think you two had too much of Grandmother's Christmas cake. I'm just going to go dump them with Takigawa-san. Perhaps her daughter can keep the two gaki busy."**

Mai watched as, despite his seemingly uncaring words, he tickled the two giggling monsters as he walked away, a small, barely there smile on his face. Feeling a surge of PK rush through her body, Mai giggled and sent it back at Naru, who immediately threw their two children in the air and floating them down safely. It was a small trick of his that all the children loved and never failed to make them laugh. Mai's thoughts turned to the incident when she had gained the ability to slightly boost Naru's powers and make it safe for use, as long as he didn't overdo it.

Turns out, it had actually been Kazuki who had inherited Gene's receptive abilities. He had the blood and psychic connection that was required, being Naru's son, which Mai could never get. However, the seeming impossible had happened when Mai had almost died, as her body had been grasping for anything that could save her life. To Mai's great guilt, her powers had basically siphoned this receptive ability and psychic connection from her unborn child, connecting it to her own abilities and internalising it. In return, it seemed that Mai's developing empath ability, that had always been latent, had filled the void she had left in her son and he had become a phenomenal empath and medium. It was one of the reasons why he had gone into shock that time, as he had lost the majority of his energy and was suddenly bombarded with emotions from those around Mai. If it hadn't been for Emily, who had been an intern at that time, both Mai and Kazuki would have died from the sudden transition.

Now, after years of testing, it had been determined that Mai's abilities was still largely the same, with the added ability of being able to 'catch' and 'throw' Naru's PK, though her body couldn't handle the really large amounts like Gene's could. Her empath ability would never develop beyond her latent empathy she had shown before, in fact, it had become a bit more passive than it had been. Kazuki, on the other hand, would never be able to receive his father's PK, though they had found, to their surprise, that if Naru overdid it with his PK and his body went into bradycardia, Kazuki acted much like a pacemaker, stabilising Naru's heart and bringing him back from the brink of death. Along with that, his empathy was first class and it enabled him to usually successfully complete jourei, as he could feel what the ghosts felt and understand them completely.

They weren't sure yet if the twins were psychic, though they suspected it due to various instances of teddies appearing somewhere else than they were before around Megumi; or Taiki telling them about a dream and a few days later they would read something similar in the news. Mai had, however, forbidden Naru to start research until they were at least six.

A tiny arm slipping around her waist had Mai glancing down to see her son leaning against her as he also watched them. Like his father, his face looked aloof, but his eyes were sparkling and his mouth slightly tilted. She wound her arm around his shoulders, holding him to her as she watched the chaos of the Christmas garden party she and Naru had held at their house. Cian, with husband Nathaniel and their adopted three year old daughter, Alisha and Emily had flown down with Martin, Luella, Lin and Madoka to visit them for a few days during Christmas. They were all standing around, laughing and talking with Ayako, John, Masako and her husband and Yasuhara with his girlfriend of four years. Bou-san was sitting and laughing with his and Ayako's seven and three year old daughters, as Mai's own twins clambered over him and Masako's two year old son toddled around his legs. Rhys and Alexis had also been present a few days previously, but had left to spend actual Christmas with their family.

" **Mum, are you really alright? You looked sad."** Mai looked down at her concerned son, so much like his father and smiled gently as she brushed his hair out of his eyes. **"Yes I really am. I'm just thinking of how much I love all of you and how precious you are to me."** Though Kazuki rolled his eyes, she could feel his shoulders relaxing and with a last squeeze, he ambled over to Bou-san, catching Masako's son in his arms as he tickled him.

Naru's arms wounding around her waist had her chuckling and she leaned back against his chest, sighing contently. His chin rested on her head as they looked out over their large garden and she couldn't be happier. His lips on her cheek had her turning her head, their lips meeting in a deep but gentle kiss. Mai could still feel her heart speeding up and her lips tingling after 14 years of being with Naru and she moaned slightly as his tongue teased hers. Breaking away after another moment, she smiled lovingly at him, delighting in the returning smile.

Someone calling her name had her grinning at Naru's disgruntled look and she giggled as she walked forward, with her husband at her side.

_Forever and Always…_

GH

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Soooooo? What did you all think? I hope you guys are satisfied and happy, because honestly, this story was never even supposed to happen. I am, however, immensely happy that I wrote it, as I enjoyed every part of it.
> 
> I hoped to demonstrate that Mai's pregnancy caused immense strain on her body and that she was really lucky to come out of it relatively unscathed. Luckily for you guys, I'm too much of a sucker for happy endings to ever even consider Mai getting a miscarriage. Thus Emily appears as a vital part of this happy ending.
> 
> Please let me know what you thought, if you liked it, thought it was merely ok, unsatisfied with something or whatever. Even if you're reading this after I have posted everything, please still leave a small comment for this last chapter, even if you didn't leave a single one previously. It would make me immensely happy;D


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